Help! My parents are frowning upon D.O. schools!

[Aloe paleo]

Hey guys! Really need some advice. I am applying to both D.O. schools and M.D. schools and no matter what I am saying to my parents, they keep on thinking that a D.O. is not a doctor and is just a chiropractor or a herbal medicine doctor. They think that D.O.'s are just wannabe M.D.'s and they want me to go to the Carribean or Europe for M.D. instead of D.O. How can I help them understand that this is not the case?!? Has anyone else had the same troubles with their parents?!

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[DOthebestyoucan]

Unless your parents are paying for your school, I'd say that this decision does not concern them and they need to educate themselves on what a D.O. does. I do understand that your parents want the best for you, so maybe you could show them the curriculum of a D.O program vs. a MD program to show them the parallelism between the two. Ultimately though, it's up to you and what you want to do with your life. I always tell myself though,..

"If I'm always doing what everyone else wants me to do, am I really living my life or just a version of theirs?"

 

[DOthebestyoucan]

Unless your parents are paying for your school, I'd say that this decision does not concern them and they need to educate themselves on what a D.O. does. I do understand that your parents want the best for you, so maybe you could show them the curriculum of a D.O program vs. a MD program to show them the parallelism between the two. Ultimately though, it's up to you and what you want to do with your life. I always tell myself though,..

"If I'm always doing what everyone else wants me to do, am I really living my life or just a version of theirs?"

Maybe @Goro would be able to put it more eloquently.

 

[Aloe paleo]

Unless your parents are paying for your school, I'd say that this decision does not concern them and they need to educate themselves on what a D.O. does. I do understand that your parents want the best for you, so maybe you could show them the curriculum of a D.O program vs. a MD program to show them the parallelism between the two. Ultimately though, it's up to you and what you want to do with your life. I always tell myself though,..

"If I'm always doing what everyone else wants me to do, am I really living my life or just a version of theirs?"

Hmmm...showing my parents the curriculum is a good idea, it's something more concrete. Thanks for the tip, I'm going to try it!

 

[Isoval]

I admit that I’m curious how this pans out.

My dad was initially hesitant. After I started school, I think he did a lot of research. Now he wants the degrees to merge.

Please let us know!

 

[Cornfed101]

https://medicalschoolhq.net/md-vs-do-what-are-the-differences-and-similarities/

might be best to let someone else explain (that has an MD)

 

[Aloe paleo]

I admit that I’m curious how this pans out.

My dad was initially hesitant. After I started school, I think he did a lot of research. Now he wants the degrees to merge.

Please let us know!

Good to hear I am not the only one who is struggling with this, and I am glad it turned out well for you!

 

[DOthebestyoucan]

Hmmm...showing my parents the curriculum is a good idea, it's something more concrete. Thanks for the tip, I'm going to try it!

Alco, I'd recommend giving this book called "the DO" by norman gewitz a read. It really goes through the history and struggles the DO has faced throughout its lifespan. It'll give you a deeper appreciation for the philosophy.

 

[BobbyKoch]

look up the staff website of a major hospital department that has both DOs and MDs on staff and show them that. I once had someone tell me that DO was basically homeopathy. I asked them if they know this local doc in town. "yeah, that's my doc!" well, they're a DO. most people have no idea.

 

[Aloe paleo]

look up the staff website of a major hospital department that has both DOs and MDs on staff and show them that. I once had someone tell me that DO was basically homeopathy. I asked them if they know this local doc in town. "yeah, that's my doc!" well, they're a DO. most people have no idea.

hahahha that's funny! Yes my parents think DO is basically homeopathy! Thanks for the idea!

 

[Goro]

Hey guys! Really need some advice. I am applying to both D.O. schools and M.D. schools and no matter what I am saying to my parents, they keep on thinking that a D.O. is not a doctor and is just a chiropractor or a herbal medicine doctor. They think that D.O.'s are just wannabe M.D.'s and they want me to go to the Carribean or Europe for M.D. instead of D.O. How can I help them understand that this is not the case?!? Has anyone else had the same troubles with their parents?!

Ahhh, parents. Doing their best out of love and ignorance to destroy your medical career.

Get them account son SDN and we'll show them the errors of their ways.

 

[Bobbbyyyy]

Why don't you just show them various attendings from different medical specialties that are DO's so they understand they're not homeopathic doctors but actually play the same role and have the same responsibilities and practice just as allopathic doctors? that should clear up the confusion quite easily.

also explain to them that DO's have a much higher match rate than Caribbean grads do, show them last year's NRMP data for each medical specialty

 

[Thelonious Chunk]

This issue comes up often being in DO school. If I don’t feel like explaining much to somebody, I briefly say that their are two degrees physicians can hold, MD or DO, and both entail identical responsibility and scope. If I want them to understand better, I focus on these points.

- can take the same board exams as MDs, but have to take an extra one
- have the same course material, but take an extra course (OMM)
- go to residency with MDs
- make the same salaries as MDs
- have the same job availability and security as MDs
- there are DO surgeons, DO dermatologists, DO (insert whatever specialty will impress them)
- most DOs don’t do manipulation, and the separation of degrees is more of a historical relic than a practical distinction

If that isn’t enough to convince them that being a DO is an awesome opportunity, just accept they are obtuse and move on. If they are seriously pushing Caribbean, they need to understand the importance of match rates.

p.s. I had the opposite problem. My family wanted me to be a naturopath instead of a DO lol.

 

[DarkHorizon]

Hey guys! Really need some advice. I am applying to both D.O. schools and M.D. schools and no matter what I am saying to my parents, they keep on thinking that a D.O. is not a doctor and is just a chiropractor or a herbal medicine doctor. They think that D.O.'s are just wannabe M.D.'s and they want me to go to the Carribean or Europe for M.D. instead of D.O. How can I help them understand that this is not the case?!? Has anyone else had the same troubles with their parents?!

Sounds like a case of Indian/Asian parents. Nothing you can do to change that.

 

[Aloe paleo]

Sounds like a case of Indian/Asian parents. Nothing you can do to change that.

Hahaha actually no ! Lol

 

[Aloe paleo]

This issue comes up often being in DO school. If I don’t feel like explaining much to somebody, I briefly say that their are two degrees physicians can hold, MD or DO, and both entail identical responsibility and scope. If I want them to understand better, I focus on these points.

- can take the same board exams as MDs, but have to take an extra one
- have the same course material, but take an extra course (OMM)
- go to residency with MDs
- make the same salaries as MDs
- have the same job availability and security as MDs
- there are DO surgeons, DO dermatologists, DO (insert whatever specialty will impress them)
- most DOs don’t do manipulation, and the separation of degrees is more of a historical relic than a practical distinction

If that isn’t enough to convince them that being a DO is an awesome opportunity, just accept they are obtuse and move on. If they are seriously pushing Caribbean, they need to understand the importance of match rates.

p.s. I had the opposite problem. My family wanted me to be a naturopath instead of a DO lol.

Thank you for your detailed advice!

 

[Aloe paleo]

My foreign-trained MD parents expressed concern about biases towards DOs when I first brought it up to them. My mom started looking at the letters next to doctors' names more at work and completely shifted to a "they're the exact same" perspective and decided she'd be thrilled with me doing either. My derm dad said he'd be gravely disappointed if that's all I get into and to have fun in primary care lol.

Moral of the story - people are stubborn and will believe what they want. You're applying to both MD and DO, so it seems that they're not hindering that process. If you get into MD, great, don't have to worry about it. If you get into DO, well, they can see at your white coat ceremony how real of a doctor you are ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I wouldn't waste energy on this now

Thank you for this

 

[fldoctorgirl]

Use the DMD/DDS comparison. Same thing, just different letters.

 

[JustPaws]

Use the DMD/DDS comparison. Same thing, just different letters.

Or the DVM/VMD in vet med

 

[Lawpy]

Use the DMD/DDS comparison. Same thing, just different letters.

Except MD and DO have different application systems, curricula, exams, matching prospects etc.

 

[fldoctorgirl]

Except MD and DO have different application systems, curricula, exams, matching prospects etc.

Yeah, except none of that is relevant when trying to explain that a DO is a legitimate doctor and not a chiropractor lol...

 

[Osminog]

I guess now is the time in your life when you’ll have to decide if you care more about achieving your dreams than you do about your parents’ *****ic opinions about things they don’t understand.

 

[drducky.]

My foreign-trained MD parents expressed concern about biases towards DOs when I first brought it up to them. My mom started looking at the letters next to doctors' names more at work and completely shifted to a "they're the exact same" perspective and decided she'd be thrilled with me doing either. My derm dad said he'd be gravely disappointed if that's all I get into and to have fun in primary care lol.

Moral of the story - people are stubborn and will believe what they want. You're applying to both MD and DO, so it seems that they're not hindering that process. If you get into MD, great, don't have to worry about it. If you get into DO, well, they can see at your white coat ceremony how real of a doctor you are ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I wouldn't waste energy on this now

Your dad probably has a point. Youre not doing derm if go DO lol

 

[Thelonious Chunk]

Your dad probably has a point. Youre not doing derm if go DO lol

We had 2 derm matches at my school this past year. You can do it if you are top 10%, excellent boards, like-able on aways, and physically attractive.

 

[39djdjcnd9]

if SDN didn’t exist you wouldn’t even care about that they said. We could start saying that people that go into family med is bad and ppl would start to feel insecure about. Who gives a **** what ppl say. Do you...also if your dad is a derm and says that then is that really the type of person you wanna be to your kids. DOs are some of the most un-condescending healthcare workers

 

[Angus Avagadro]

Your parents sound like they would be unhappy if you didnt get into Penn and then went to Drexel instead. Pedigree shaming and bigotry is not unusual. If you run into someone from an Ivy med program, you usually learn from them where they trained in the first 30 sec. MDs do it to each other, so dont take it personally. I think the difficulty of DOs matching competetive residencies is overblown on SDN. Check the NRMP data and you will see decent match rates for the majority of specialties. I think people lamenting the lack of opportunity for competetive specialties weren't competetive to get into top schools in the first place. Yet they think they will get in at ol State U med school and do neurosurgery at MGH. Bottom line, it's a harder road as a DO, but not impossible if you bring the stats and a competetive app. Dont worry about your parents, they will get over it once they get a look at your pre clinical course notes. Good luck and best wishes!

 

[Angus Avagadro]

My foreign-trained MD parents expressed concern about biases towards DOs when I first brought it up to them. My mom started looking at the letters next to doctors' names more at work and completely shifted to a "they're the exact same" perspective and decided she'd be thrilled with me doing either. My derm dad said he'd be gravely disappointed if that's all I get into and to have fun in primary care lol.

Moral of the story - people are stubborn and will believe what they want. You're applying to both MD and DO, so it seems that they're not hindering that process. If you get into MD, great, don't have to worry about it. If you get into DO, well, they can see at your white coat ceremony how real of a doctor you are ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I wouldn't waste energy on this now

Well, at.least your Mom is coming around. Apparently Dad's not on board yet. I find it a little ironic that as an FMG he is showing such bias as I'm sure he has experienced some bias along the way. As far as the Enjoy primary care comment, enjoy popping zits and looking at jock itch. There is not enough money to entice me into dermatology. My son is in primary care and and has no regrets. That's why we are all different. Follow your heart and run your own race. Its your career, not theirs. Good luck and best wishes.

 

[Dr.Bruh]

My parents though MD meant "Masters Degree" and DO was short for "Doctor" so I had the opposite issue lol. People from my hometown think I'm in nursing school or Rad Tech school when I say im in medical school. 90% of people don't even know that they are seeing an NP or PA and not physician.

 

[kfcchikin]

LMAO. This stereotype of asian and indian parents is same stereotype that ignorant people have of DO students and doctors.

No it's not lol. Not all of them are like this but a disproportionately large amount are

 

[Apprentice of St. Luke]

Hey guys! Really need some advice. I am applying to both D.O. schools and M.D. schools and no matter what I am saying to my parents, they keep on thinking that a D.O. is not a doctor and is just a chiropractor or a herbal medicine doctor. They think that D.O.'s are just wannabe M.D.'s and they want me to go to the Carribean or Europe for M.D. instead of D.O. How can I help them understand that this is not the case?!? Has anyone else had the same troubles with their parents?!

Caveat: I have respect for any physician, regardless of where s/he earned his or her degree, who makes it through the residency pipeline. That being said, some IMG's are not working as physicians. This doctor became a nurse practitioner, which is fine if you want to be one (I am not going to turn this into another physician versus NP/PA - my point is that many IMG's don't match into U.S. residencies). But I want to be the top dog, err, alpha cat (my current school mascot is the cougar or "Coog") and the freedom to move around from rural to urban and vice versa. Consequently, I personally am giving D.O. schools some thought, and if accepted, will run with my acceptance. If I am not accepted into medical school, I will shift into another field completely.

After earning an MD, she's headed back to school — to become a nurse

Dr. Heidi Schmidt failed to match to a residency after four years of medical school. Now she is heading to nursing school.

www.statnews.com

 

[MusicDOc124]

Generalization with some wiggle room.... BS=BA, MS=MA, DMD=DDS, PhD=PsyD, DO=MD. There can be more than 1 degree for a multitude of fields. Maybe explain it like that if they're not understanding other ways you've said it?