MD v. DO employment opportunities

[aggiebuj]

My question basically is whether DOs face any problems/challenges when trying to find employment down the road (given they do not want a private practice)? Apparently the medical community is becoming more accepting of DOs but there are some people out there who still want to discriminate. Thanks for your input.

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[Spiderman [RNA Ladder 2003]]

I would not go DO if you have credentials that would let you go into MD school. I heard that it is harder for DOs to get into competetive resindcies. There is not really enough information about DO school about what they teach. I found some info on the DO school application system but even they are not clear about what's the difference. DO are taught some "manipulations" and they did not explain what these manipulations involved. Looks like needle therapy or something or other bs like that.

 

[FutureM.D.]

D.O's are taught the same exact thing in medical school as M.D's except that they are given extra training in manipulations. don't get naturopath and ostoepath confused. And the manipulations are not 'needles and stuff' it's kind of like chiropractic work. But don't think if you become a D.O you'll be doing a bunch of chiropractic work. You'll be doing the same exact thing as any M.D but you'll have an extra edge when it comes to structural problems. Like if someone's back is out, a d.o can do the manipulations(techniques) necessary to put it back in place. Try visiting the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine web page. It will give you a lot of info. There is an entire section about what osteopathy is and what 'manipulations' are. It can explain it to you a lot better than I can.
Even though my first choice school is allopathic, I'm definetly going to apply to osteopathic schools and even if i don't go to one I will ALWAYS keep their philosophy in mind. "Treat the entire person- physically, mentally, and spiritually".
As for the residencies, they have just as much of a chance and an even greater chance if it is a osteopathic teaching school their applying to. i think the only disadvantage is that they do not practice over seas, but they may gain that privelige in the future. I shadow doctors through a program I'm with at a hospital and I have shadowed both D.O's and M.D's. I was attacted to how the D.O seemed more in tune with the person's entire health and not just the problem they came in for. This message is getting long so I'm going to cut it short, but I would also like to say that some M.D's are now trying to recieve training in 'manipulations'. Sorry this message was so long, but I just had to say it all.

 

[Dr/\/\om]

Originally posted by Spiderman [RNA Ladder 2003]
There is not really enough information about DO school about what they teach.

What do you mean?

They teach anatomy, physiology, biochem, pathology, etc just like the allopathic schools do. Feel free to look at my school's catalog
http://www.healthsciences.okstate.edu/center/catalog/2001-02_Catalog.pdf
(the info on coursework is on pgs 26-33)

I'm sure that other schools have similar information available.

FutureM.D. has a good explanation.

As to residency opportunities: DOs can apply to DO or MD residencies (some MD residencies actually hold spots to be filled by DOs), which means that DOs actually have more residency options. A good DO can get into a competitive residency just as a good MD can.

For the OP, in general being a DO will not affect your ability to find a job...there are some regional differences, though, since some states have lots of DOs and others have very few.

Hope this helps!

 

[FutureM.D.]

Bump!!

People should see these posts.Way to go dr. Mom!! clap: