LOR question

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studentdocftw

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Hey guys!

I have a question regarding a DO LOR. Are they necessary to receive an interview? Or simply for matriculation? I recently started scribing in the ED and I do work alongside some DOs. However, I haven't had enough experience for them to write an objective recommendation regarding my clinical experience and aptitude for medical school. Should I wait to submit my primary applications to schools and submit them in Aug? (presumably once I've had enough experience to request a strong LOR), or should I go ahead and submit them now, hope for an interview, and submit the LOR later? I'm worried that by submitting my application now (without a DO LOR) they will toss my app to the trash.

Another possibility would be shadowing a D.O. for a day or two and asking for a LOR (though this won't be nearly as strong as a LOR coming from a D.O. I scribe for)

If you think stats may affect how schools perceive my situation:
Updated AACOMAS GPA cGPA 3.67 sGPA 3.69 MCAT = 28

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Hey guys!

I have a question regarding a DO LOR. Are they necessary to receive an interview? Or simply for matriculation? I recently started scribing in the ED and I do work alongside some DOs. However, I haven't had enough experience for them to write an objective recommendation regarding my clinical experience and aptitude for medical school. Should I wait to submit my primary applications to schools and submit them in Aug? (presumably once I've had enough experience to request a LOR), or should I go ahead and submit them now, hope for an interview, and submit a the LOR later? I'm worried that by submitting my application now (without a DO LOR) they will toss my app to the trash.

Another possibility would be shadowing a D.O. for a day or two and asking for a LOR (though this won't be nearly as strong as a LOR coming from a D.O. I scribe for)

If you think stats may affect how schools perceive my situation:
Updated AACOMAS GPA cGPA 3.67 sGPA 3.69 MCAT = 28

I believe LECOM is one of the programs that absolutely requires a DO LOR to receive an ii. The AACOMAS CIB will provide detailed info regarding whether schools require or recommend this letter.

I shadow a DO for one day and got an LOR. They just want to see that you understand the DO "difference" which really can only be seen in seeing a PCP DO perform OMM on his patients.
 
Hmm, ok. I guess I can always opt to submit the "stronger" D.O. letter later in the cycle..as a booster once schools receive my app. In that case, I'll try to shadow one soon. It just feels weird asking for a LOR one day after meeting with someone...how much can you actually assess in one day?
 
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I'm going to be honest with you. I've shadowed a DO for 100 hours and have only seen maybe 2 cases where OMT was used. Most DO's have stopped practicing OMM or have not used it heavily in practice. Most of the cases I saw was almost exactly indistinguishable from shadowing a MD PCP.

There has to be a specific type of patient with a specific diagnosis for OMM to be used. In one day, you'll probably not see a difference between DO and MD. Even after 100 hours, I don't find many differences between MD's and DO's. I do notice that for some patients, DO's use a little more hands on care. Most of the differences were based on the personality of the physicians themselves and how they work.
 
I can attest to this as well...though the environment of an ED doesn't really give the DO time for OMM even if he/she wanted to implement it. And what used to be the "holistic" approach is essentially the same for MD/DO. Though as an aside...I will admit that the DOs do ask more non-medical questions (how is work going, how's life at home, what do you do for a living, etc.)...though this probably varies from place to place. Such a struggle. lol.
 
I believe DO letter is recommended at most schools, but it won't kill you if you don't have one. If you can get that DO letter later, then submit that to all schools later. OMM is pretty interesting to watch when DO's do it and I've seen patients completely cured of pain.
 
I think I will get a weak one early..submit that. Then in August or so, ask one of the DOs I scribe for to write me one and submit that. At least theyll be able to assess my aptitude and interest in medicine based on an extended period of time.
 
The LOR won't be required until you submit secondaries. At that point I'm assuming you will have been scribing long enough to get a decent LOR from a physician.
 
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