Interested in osteopathic medicine (as such) but open to applying to MD schools

[Apprentice of St. Luke]

For the record, I am doing postbaccalaureate (DIY) while pursuing a second degree in liberal studies at the University of Houston - Main Campus. As part of the liberal studies degree, I am pursuing a minor in music theory with science prerequisites, as my future clinical interests are to work with musicians in the future, both with performance related injuries as well as those to which all are susceptible, such as traumatic head injury, but which can afflict them differently (my first degree was a bachelor of arts in psychology, conferred in 2009). I am not entirely decided which medical specialty route would be best for me given my interests and am open to many things, but from what I have read so far, physiatry - physical medicine and rehabilitation would be a good fit.

Now that that is out of the way, judging from what I have been reading so far, I may be one of the few posters on SDN who is actually interested in osteopathic medicine as such, as opposed to merely a second best option. (I actually have an old account here on Student Doctor Network, dating back to 2002 - my high school graduation year - but I do not remember any of the login information, as I have not logged in since circa 2008 to 2010. Nevertheless, I have still been reading posts on here.)

That being said, as any post on SDN should ideally post a question, here is mine:

Is there anyone here encouraged by the creation of osteopathic focused residencies under the ACGME, or similar things related to it, such as the acceptance of MD's into the American Osteopathic Association as full voting members (August 2018 decision by the Board of Trustees)?

From my point of view, as a premedical student, it gives me more options from which to pursue my medical degree. Not only can I consider the standard questions, such as research opportunities, I can also consider other things one does not actually post on a medical school application, such as desirability of location, family matters, traditional Catholic worship, etc. Not only can I consider the 34 COCA accredited medical schools, but the 133 civilian LCME accredited ones as well. I love the city life (save for the crime). I am in my mid-30s now, I know what I want in life, and I will, one way or another, make a future marriage work together with a medical career. Given a choice, I will give up on the medical degree.

The other thing is, my GPA is not too stellar now. However, the college I am pursuing a second baccalaureate degree from is adding an LCME accredited medical school to be opened in 2020. From what I have read over the years, many of those with not too great statistics tend to apply for the newer medical schools, as the better students usually do not want to gamble on being a "guinea pig" at the newer schools.

Also for the record, my last attempt at DIY post-baccalaureate studies was in the fall of 2013. This fall is my first semester back in class in the past five year.

Please do not turn this into an osteopathic medicine bashing thread. I have read the research myself over the past decade, and while I agree some of the claims of osteopathic proponents are rubbish, there is a whole lot of truth to it. I am at least open to seeing what further research can be done in this field.

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[Goro]

For the record, I am doing postbaccalaureate (DIY) while pursuing a second degree in liberal studies at the University of Houston - Main Campus. As part of the liberal studies degree, I am pursuing a minor in music theory with science prerequisites, as my future clinical interests are to work with musicians in the future, both with performance related injuries as well as those to which all are susceptible, such as traumatic head injury, but which can afflict them differently (my first degree was a bachelor of arts in psychology, conferred in 2009). I am not entirely decided which medical specialty route would be best for me given my interests and am open to many things, but from what I have read so far, physiatry - physical medicine and rehabilitation would be a good fit.

Now that that is out of the way, judging from what I have been reading so far, I may be one of the few posters on SDN who is actually interested in osteopathic medicine as such, as opposed to merely a second best option. (I actually have an old account here on Student Doctor Network, dating back to 2002 - my high school graduation year - but I do not remember any of the login information, as I have not logged in since circa 2008 to 2010. Nevertheless, I have still been reading posts on here.)

That being said, as any post on SDN should ideally post a question, here is mine:

Is there anyone here encouraged by the creation of osteopathic focused residencies under the ACGME, or similar things related to it, such as the acceptance of MD's into the American Osteopathic Association as full voting members (August 2018 decision by the Board of Trustees)?

From my point of view, as a premedical student, it gives me more options from which to pursue my medical degree. Not only can I consider the standard questions, such as research opportunities, I can also consider other things one does not actually post on a medical school application, such as desirability of location, family matters, traditional Catholic worship, etc. Not only can I consider the 34 COCA accredited medical schools, but the 133 civilian LCME accredited ones as well. I love the city life (save for the crime). I am in my mid-30s now, I know what I want in life, and I will, one way or another, make a future marriage work together with a medical career. Given a choice, I will give up on the medical degree.

The other thing is, my GPA is not too stellar now. However, the college I am pursuing a second baccalaureate degree from is adding an LCME accredited medical school to be opened in 2020. From what I have read over the years, many of those with not too great statistics tend to apply for the newer medical schools, as the better students usually do not want to gamble on being a "guinea pig" at the newer schools.

Also for the record, my last attempt at DIY post-baccalaureate studies was in the fall of 2013. This fall is my first semester back in class in the past five year.

Please do not turn this into an osteopathic medicine bashing thread. I have read the research myself over the past decade, and while I agree some of the claims of osteopathic proponents are rubbish, there is a whole lot of truth to it. I am at least open to seeing what further research can be done in this field.

There are MD schools, as well as all DO, that reward reinvention.

That said, you do now have 133 MD school available to you to apply to when you're ready to apply. A fair number are mission- and or state specific. For example, if you're not from GA, you can rule out Mercer and MCG. Not from TX, an the UTs and Baylor out.

Who's opening a med school in 2020? TCU? If you're a Texan, and/or a student at TCU, then chances best there.

The merger has nothing to do with suitability to MD vs DO schools. Your stats and ECs determine that. The merger has to do with residencies only. ACGME has nothing to do with MD schools.

 

[Apprentice of St. Luke]

There are MD schools, as well as all DO, that reward reinvention.

That said, you do now have 133 MD school available to you to apply to when you're ready to apply. A fair number are mission- and or state specific. For example, if you're not from GA, you can rule out Mercer and MCG. Not from TX, an the UTs and Baylor out.

Who's opening a med school in 2020? TCU? If you're a Texan, and/or a student at TCU, then chances best there.

The merger has nothing to do with suitability to MD vs DO schools. Your stats and ECs determine that. The merger has to do with residencies only. ACGME has nothing to do with MD schools.

What I am trying to say is that there is with the merger, there is now an official way by which MD's who have an interest in osteopathic medicine can be recognized (that is, with the creation of osteopathic focus residencies; yes, I know that residencies are taken after medical school, in case that is what you are referring to). Consequently, it is not strictly necessary to attend a COCA accredited school if one has an interest in osteopathic medicine.

I have no idea whatsoever what you are referring to by "reinvention", but if you are referring to osteopathic medicine as such, I will only say that I have done my own review of the research literature and think that it is worth looking into.

Finally, the school I am referring to is the one being opened by the college I am at now: the University of Houston.

 

[Goro]

What I am trying to say is that there is with the merger, there is now an official way by which MD's who have an interest in osteopathic medicine can be recognized (that is, with the creation of osteopathic focus residencies; yes, I know that residencies are taken after medical school, in case that is what you are referring to). Consequently, it is not strictly necessary to attend a COCA accredited school if one has an interest in osteopathic medicine.

I have no idea whatsoever what you are referring to by "reinvention", but if you are referring to osteopathic medicine as such, I will only say that I have done my own review of the research literature and think that it is worth looking into.

Finally, the school I am referring to is the one being opened by the college I am at now: the University of Houston.

If you wish to learn about osteopathic medicine, go to a DO school. Residency is where you learn the craft of your speciality.

 

[libertyyne]

1. Brevity is the soul of wit.
2. If you can get accepted to an MD school , go to one. If not DO is a good option as well. There are meaningful differences in opportunities that are provided by MD schools over DO schools.
3. The evidence for most of OMM is not very robust. However the harm is not very significant either so it doesnt matter .
4. IF you want to learn OMM you should go to a DO school. If you want to learn how to do research in a clinical setting, you should probably go to a good MD school.