Finding a D.O. school that promotes involvement in global health

[ehaskins]

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Can anyone suggest a D.O. school for someone with interests in getting involved in global health? I know that there are some M.D. schools that have affiliations abroad.

 

[OzDDS]

Can anyone suggest a D.O. school for someone with interests in getting involved in global health? I know that there are some M.D. schools that have affiliations abroad.

Define global health.. if you mean you want to practice outside the US. You may have problems. DOs are not as easily registerable to practice medicine in other countries as MDs are. Consider this before you choose your school. If you want to practice health policy, or public health. You don't always need a medical degree to do this. Try looking into MPH Master of public health, or MIPH Master of International public health programs! Good luck!

 

[Nate]

If you are interested in practicing medicine outside of the country on a permanent basis then it is as OzDDS says. However, if you are interested in practicing medicine in poor and under-served countries on a temporary basis, as I am, then you will have no problem at all in most countries. You can even join doctors without borders as a DO.

VCOM has an international medicine program that does missions to some countries, expenses paid if I remember correctly, and also has a very nice plan for residency. If you commit one year to their international medicine program during residency they will forgive a significant amount of your loans. The more years you commit the more they forgive. NSU also does international medicine missions, to Guatemala and Peru I believe, but the expenses are your own there. This was part of what I took into account when choosing my school and although UMDNJ doesn't have a program like these other schools, it does support students going out of country for elective rotations and the school is very supportive of student interest and clubs. I plan to look into starting an international medicine club, along with some of my classmates, which will hopefully hold yearly missions to places like Honduras and India. The point is, if you are interested in international medicine to serve the underserved communities in the world then you can make it happen but choose your school wisely.
Good Luck

 

[waq007]

nate, where r u practicing international medicine? which country. i think med schools should make it mandatory for med students to go abroad and help the REALLY needy. anywho, though i'm not even in a D.O. school yet, if there is anything i can do here (toronto) to help with international med, don't hesitate to ask. love to help out for a good cause anytime 😉 😀

 

[ehaskins]

I do have an MPH in international health promotion, thanks for the advice. I'm applying to medical schools this year and just want to make sure that I won't be at a disadvantage at a D.O. school given my particular interests. My goals are more in line with having the opportunity to go and do relief work in the developing world. If I were ever to be interested in working abroad somewhere for an extended period of time it would most likely be in the developing world, most likely in Southeast Asia. I really don't see how a D.O. or an M.D. could practice medicine in the developing world for their career. It would be really hard to make a living doing this. In many parts of the world there are already plenty of physicians, so I don't want to go in and potentially take jobs from the in-country physicians. Many countries even have laws preventing this from happening. Volunteering for a period of time is not usually an issue. I would imagine that if someone were interested in working abroad as a physician as a career, then most opportunities would be in the public health field. Given this, does anyone know what the best residency would be for someone interested in being a physician and working abroad in the field of public health? I know that there are opportunities to do things like Preventive medicine, but does this rule out your chance to practice clinical medicine as well? Pediactrics and Infectious Disease might be some other areas.

 

[Khenon]

I'm not sure if I'm actually answering your question, but COMP told us at the interview that they have optional rotations at certain international sites. The catch is you have to speak the language of the country you're going to.

 

[Nate]

I have been to Honduras where I helped out but I have not begun my training yet so there is not much I can do just yet. I have an AOA document that someone on SDN was nice enough to give me that lists all the countries that the AOA has made contact with about licensure and practice in their countries. For instance this is the information about India and Honduras.

Honduras
Year of Last Request: 2002
Scope of Practice: Unlimited
The National Autonomous University must accredit all foreign titles. After accreditation is completed, then applicant must seek registration with the Medical College of Honduras (MCH). Titles, grades, and lesson plans must be authenticated in the country where studies were completed. Authentication must be done by the Honduran Consul in the same state. Upon completion, MCH will issue a provisional permit good for one year to a Honduran doctor who has done training outside of Honduras, and foreign applicants must complete two years of the Ad-Honorem Social Service. When the two years have expired, applicant may apply for Definitive Registration.
Contact: Dr. Julio Alberto Bourdeth Tosta
Secretary of Registration
Board of Directors of the Medical College of Honduras
P.O. Box 810
Tegucigalpa, M.D.C.
HONDURAS

India
Year of Last Request: 1999
Scope of Practice: undetermined
The AOA received a response to its 1998 inquiry regarding licensure of US-trained DOs. The Medical Council of India stated that osteopathic medicine degree is not recognized for the purpose of IMC Act, 1956. However, they did state that a DO might apply after getting Indian nationality and after implementation of screening test Regulation/Provision in the Indian Medical Council Act.
Contact: Delhi Medical Council
RM NO 356-357 3rd Floor
Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg
New Delhi 110002
INDIA

If anyone wants the full document private message me with your email address.