i notice you pull the 'i'm not trying to sound inflammatory this is just my opinion...' remark a lot. but you are inflammatory and your opinion has little meaning to this forum because you are incredibly bitter, ignorant, and have openly stated that you never wanted to be a podiatrist in the first place and had always wanted to be a DO/MD. you stated you couldn't get into an MD/DO school so you settled for podiatry, my question is why in the world do you think you would be happy doing something you never wanted to do?! quit taking out your disappointment and anger on the field.
by saying (and capitalizing) "VERY narrow" when describing a pods skills you are inflammatory. by saying that you don't understand why anyone would want to be a podiatrist, you are inflammatory. by saying podiatry is a 'back door route' to being a doctor, you are inflammatory. a back door route could be seen as carribean medical schools, some ignorant people would consider DO a backdoor route. podiatry is not a back door route to anything.
you once posted the following:
"I've read several posts where the poster claims to have gotten into MD or DO school, but decided to go to pod school instead. This is mystifying to me."
that is a comment you made which tells a lot about you. you basically see MD/DO as the final product, something that everyone strives for and see it as the one and only true health profession. it is people like you that do the health system a disservice because you are the ones that create this hierarchy of BS that puts the title "doctor" on a pedestal. it probably boggles your mind why one would go into dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, etc if they had an acceptance to MD/DO school.
i am wasting my time enough on this reply, but please quick knocking down podiatry just because YOU didn't like it. keep in mind times have changed and podiatry isn't like it used to be either. yes, there are problems within the field of podiatry, but there are problems in EVERY field.
(oh yeah, everything here is just my opinion and hope none of it was inflammatory)
Easy, partner. I guess if you are uncomfortable with my opinions, then you might see them as inflammatory. And, you certainly managed to spew out a lot of rhetoric in a relatively short post.
What makes me "ignorant"? My own personal experience? My DPM and DO education? It's best that you save your personal attacks unless you can back it up with some intelligent research.
I don't think there's anything wrong with me admitting that I didn't want to be a pod in the 1st place. There's also nothing wrong with me feeling bitter about my crappy education/"residency". Remember, since we do live in the United States I am entitled to express my opinion. I also couldn't get into MD/DO school on my 1st attempt but did get into pod school. Do you think I'm the 1st pod student who experienced this? I've NEVER said that I don't understand why anyone would want to be a podiatrist. If I did say that I thought podiatry was a backdoor route to being a doctor, I shouldn't have because that is highly inflammatory. If I said that, it was because I was angry about my own personal experience. I also have my own, personal misgivings on whether or not I felt like a "doctor" after I finished my pod education. Using "backdoor route" was inappropriate and I apologize. And, yes, I did post this "I've read several posts where the poster claims to have gotten into MD or DO school, but decided to go to pod school instead. This is mystifying to me." Again. My opinion. It is mystifying to me. Please de-mystify this for everyone. Forgive this assumption, but it does stand to reason that most students who enter pod school are interested in being a doctor. If this is true, then you may or may not agree with me that a DO or MD education will train you more broadly to be a full physician than you would as a pod student. If your desire is to be a physician then why would you choose podiatry school? Granted, there are certainly some people who may not be interested in learning all aspects of medicine and who are satisfied with finishing a medically truncated education (oohh...more inflammatory remarks...or am I just pointing out the obvious difference in educations...?). Of course, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this! You seem to confuse my opinions on medical education with some sort of egomaniacal view on the world of health care. My puzzlement arises from the idea that if someone wants to be a physician and has the opportunity to pursue a medical education (in the U.S. or another legitimate venue) then why would they choose a podiatric education? Why did they even apply to MD or DO school in the 1st place? It's no secret that it's pretty freaking easy to get into pod school and more competitive to get into medical school (save a few overseas schools). Why would one choose pod school if they also got into a LEGIT med school? If you are so secure with your choice in podiatry then you really shouldn't read my posts as inflammatory. I really don't understand why someone would choose podiatry over a legitimate medical school if being a doctor is their ultimate goal.
When I said "VERY narrow" my intent was to point out the VERY narrow amount of training and education a podiatrist might receive that an MD or DO would not receive in terms of diagnosing/managing a patient. Many FP residents do one or two months of podiatry rotations which teaches them the basics. Ortho residents are trained in many of the pod surgical techniques (but not all). Presumably, if you are interested in combining the two types of education (med school and pod school) you would choose one of these specialties. What's left in podiatry isn't worth the additional cost or time that you would have to invest to get your dual degree. My position is that there isn't a whole lot that is "proprietary knowledge" in the field of podiatric medicine that you will not or cannot learn as an MD or DO. The minute amount of technical information is not worth the extra investment. Further, my position is also that life is much easier as an MD or DO than it is as a DPM. I'm sure this statement also pisses you off, but I've already spent my wad on this particular sub-topic. This link is emblematic of the differences in job opportunities:
http://www.aafp.org/fpm/20010200/3314al.html
In reference to your other statement that I see MD/DO as the final product - yes, I do see an MD and a DO as the most complete medical education one can receive. What's wrong with this? Did I say that anyone else was inferior? No. Did you imagine that I said this? Yes. Additionally, I have NEVER, EVER denegrated podiatry in any of my posts. Podiatrists are an extremely important part of the healthcare system and they do not get nearly the respect and attention that they deserve. It still amazes me how ignorant MD's and DO's are when it comes to what a pod can do.
You have no idea who I am. I treat everyone that I meet with equal respect and dignity. I don't think that I'm better than anyone nor do I think that I'm smarter than anyone. Healthcare is a team effort. Frankly, I think that oftentimes doctors know more than they need to and the nurses know what's important. If you're interested in bashing me on this forum, back it up with at least a little bit of research. If I'm out of line, I'll apologize.
