"Horrified" when advised DO... why?

[puddlemini]

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We recently had a discussion panel at our University where students and professions in the Health Professions were to talk to us about their experiences.

The discussion was at once eye-opening and confusing. I had already decided the head "DO" after encouragement from my own doctor. However, something that one of the medical students said caught my attention.

She's currently at a Medical School in the Caribe and she was talking about her experiences in University and Grad school.

Apparently, she didnt do so well her first couple of years in school and was advised that medical school was "not for her". They suggested other options for her. Her exact quote was "I was horrified. They were telling me that I would never have a chance to become a doctor. That I should go to [a nearby DO school] because of my scores. But, I didnt give up. I went to grad school for 2 years and now here I am!"

So basically, I was wondering, why was there such a strong opposition? Do people still avoid the label "DO"?

 

[cliffhuxtableDO]

she's dumb.

 

[megathunder]

2 years and she got herself into the vaunted Caribbean? Lol, no need to say much else.

 

[PunkmedGirl]

2 years and she got herself into the vaunted Caribbean? Lol, no need to say much else.

Exactly.

 

[TriagePreMed]

Every Caribbean student I have spoken to tries to put down the DO degree and say they really wanted an MD. If you ask for their scores, you realize they would have never made it to a DO school, so instead of admitting they sucked so much to get into any school in the US, they make up a story about DO. Usually they also have some kind of BS story about applying to only like 3-4 schools and then just taking Caribbean after rejection of those 3-4 schools because Caribbean offered some kind of scholarship and it was better than waiting.

 

[thepoopologist]

I don't judge those who choose Caribbean over DO. They had their reasons for going, and I had my reasons for going to a DO school.

It's when they start putting down the DO degree that I get pissed off, and 100% of the reason for that is because I will be working with a Caribbean grad at one point or another and if that is the general mentality on the islands, then I will be quick to nail their ass to the floor when they open their mouth about that. Simply put, some people like to step on others to try to make themselves look better. Medicine is full of egotistical sons of bitches and you will live and die by the strength of your knowledge base and the strength of your personality when dealing with colleagues harboring self esteem issues.

Personally had I gotten into a brand spanking new DO school that just popped up and St George, I would've chosen St George. Any other Carib school and I would've chosen the DO school.

Advantages over Caribbean
1. In America
2. Established rotation sites, at least with the older DO schools
3. Smaller class sizes
4. Can sign outside the match like Carib MD
5. DO and MD residencies to choose from. Quality in training varies among DO vs DO residencies, DO vs MD residencies, MD vs MD residencies, but lots of choice can't be bad. The DO residency trained orthos/derms/internists I've met aren't exactly taking extra shifts at the Denny's to make ends meet.
6. Full practice rights in all 50 states regardless of the school you choose. Unlike the Carib, which is big 4 only.
7. Don't have to deal with ECFMG
8. Resolution 42 addresses the 5 state osteopathic internship deal, I think. I also think a DO resident should probably clarify this for you, since I'm not at that point yet.

My advice when choosing among the schools you've been accepted to is to be as practically minded as possible, and not let pride get in the way of what you want to ultimately achieve.

AND GO SHADOW A D.O. FOR GODSAKE.

 

[thepoopologist]

We recently had a discussion panel at our University where students and professions in the Health Professions were to talk to us about their experiences.

The discussion was at once eye-opening and confusing. I had already decided the head "DO" after encouragement from my own doctor. However, something that one of the medical students said caught my attention.

She's currently at a Medical School in the Caribe and she was talking about her experiences in University and Grad school.

Apparently, she didnt do so well her first couple of years in school and was advised that medical school was "not for her". They suggested other options for her. Her exact quote was "I was horrified. They were telling me that I would never have a chance to become a doctor. That I should go to [a nearby DO school] because of my scores. But, I didnt give up. I went to grad school for 2 years and now here I am!"

So basically, I was wondering, why was there such a strong opposition? Do people still avoid the label "DO"?

Let's assume she was presented with the choice of either going to a DO medical school, or a graduate school for a two year degree in the hopes of possibly making it into a US MD school.

So instead of going to a DO medical school, which offers a degree that gives full practice rights after residency and the same salary and job as its MD counterparts after residency, she chose to go to graduate school for TWO YEARS and then return to a Caribbean school.

She could've been halfway done with medical school had she gone the DO route instead of doing grad school. That is, assuming she even applied in the first place. How smart can that really be?


Take my opinion for what it's worth. You do what you feel is best for you.

 

[traitorman]

i think as a foreign graduate in general, certain specialties are immediately closed off such as EM. you'll get that MD after your name, but you won't necessarily get to do the kind of job you might be interested. i would hate to go through the time, effort, and money to end up doing a job i wouldn't enjoy

 

[willen101383]

Thats pretty hilarious considering caribbean schools will take anyone who $hits and breaths.....

US MD and DO schools actually care about their student's success and only accept people they think will make it though med school.

Carribbean schools only care about their student's wallet size....and if that student fails out...hey..they still got a year or two of tuition out of em!

Nobody cares about DO school. If DO students were so sub par...why are all the averages on my schools exams just as high as any MD school? Think about that. The exams arent any easier my friends

 

[VeeTeeHokies]

We recently had a discussion panel at our University where students and professions in the Health Professions were to talk to us about their experiences.

The discussion was at once eye-opening and confusing. I had already decided the head "DO" after encouragement from my own doctor. However, something that one of the medical students said caught my attention.

She's currently at a Medical School in the Caribe and she was talking about her experiences in University and Grad school.

Apparently, she didnt do so well her first couple of years in school and was advised that medical school was "not for her". They suggested other options for her. Her exact quote was "I was horrified. They were telling me that I would never have a chance to become a doctor. That I should go to [a nearby DO school] because of my scores. But, I didnt give up. I went to grad school for 2 years and now here I am!"

So basically, I was wondering, why was there such a strong opposition? Do people still avoid the label "DO"?

My guess: Ignorance, in the most literal sense of the word of course.

 

[Dissected]

i think as a foreign graduate in general, certain specialties are immediately closed off such as EM

😕 What gave you that idea? I would forgo medical school rather than go to a Caribbean school, but they certainly go into a lot of different fields. I have met several EM physicians that went to the Caribbean (all SGU). In fact, the number of IMG's matching into EM has been steadily increasing over the past few years. There are a significant number of foreign graduates that match into nearly every specialty, and the standouts clearly do well for themselves. Granted the match rate is horrendous...

Don't just make things up 👎

 

[VeeTeeHokies]

😕 What gave you that idea? I would forgo medical school rather than go to a Caribbean school, but they certainly go into a lot of different fields. I have met several EM physicians that went to the Caribbean (all SGU). In fact, the number of IMG's matching into EM has been steadily increasing over the past few years. There are a significant number of foreign graduates that match into nearly every specialty, and the standouts clearly do well for themselves. Granted the match rate is horrendous...

Don't just make things up 👎

Agreed. Nothing is necessarily OFF-LIMITS for IMGs, it's just an uphill battle. My mom's friend's son graduated from Ross and is currently in a residency at Hopkins.

 

[Dissected]

Nobody cares about DO school. If DO students were so sub par...why are all the averages on my schools exams just as high as any MD school? Think about that. The exams arent any easier my friends

You can't compare scores this way. That is silly. Exam questions and styles from school to school are one of the most subjective things I can imagine. The only real way to compare students academically would be to compare board scores. I'm past the point of caring about comparing that kind of stuff anyways. Who cares??

 

[trailking]

Look at the debate taking place over a Universal health plan for the U.S. Unfortunately, people truly lack a modicum of critical thinking skills. DO is fine and
a better option than the Carib or Tajikstan School of Medicine which sells the MD.
Early in the game the DO model had some perceived vodoo associated with it, but
that's the past. In DO you must complete about 200 hours of manipulative
training, but the outstanding question is how much OMM do you use in actual practice? Lots of fly-by-night operatives in the Carib except for about four
schools. DO is a safer bet than the Carib and actually nobody really cares about the initials after your name.

 

[Tin Man]

Every Caribbean student I have spoken to tries to put down the DO degree and say they really wanted an MD. If you ask for their scores, you realize they would have never made it to a DO school, so instead of admitting they sucked so much to get into any school in the US, they make up a story about DO. Usually they also have some kind of BS story about applying to only like 3-4 schools and then just taking Caribbean after rejection of those 3-4 schools because Caribbean offered some kind of scholarship and it was better than waiting.

Blah. That's not much different than a lot of the DO students I talk to saying that they really, really wanted DO because they adhere to the philosophy. Until I dig and figure out that their scores were generally not good enough to get into most MD med schools.

Then I talk to MD students at state schools who claim that they just wanted to stay near home, until I dig and figure out most of them didn't have the scores to get into any of the top tier schools.

People always try to justify these things. I would be more surprised if the girl openly admitted she hated Caribbean and wish she had gone DO instead.

 

[traitorman]

😕 What gave you that idea? I would forgo medical school rather than go to a Caribbean school, but they certainly go into a lot of different fields. I have met several EM physicians that went to the Caribbean (all SGU). In fact, the number of IMG's matching into EM has been steadily increasing over the past few years. There are a significant number of foreign graduates that match into nearly every specialty, and the standouts clearly do well for themselves. Granted the match rate is horrendous...

Don't just make things up 👎

Agreed. Nothing is necessarily OFF-LIMITS for IMGs, it's just an uphill battle. My mom's friend's son graduated from Ross and is currently in a residency at Hopkins.

my apologies, i hope my statement didn't come off as fact as I wrote that I was thinking that was the case in regards to foreign grads. thanks for clearing that up. a few docs i spoke with had mentioned this and i guess i never really questioned it. good to know though