Myths of DOs (Written by 4th year MD)

[AlteredScale]

Just wanted to add (and I know this is an "n=1" case) but there is a DO resident at New York Presbyterian Emergency Medicine. As you all know, NYP is a very high caliber medical center so it's great to see DO's enter these programs.

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[DoctorSynthesis]

Just wanted to add (and I know this is an "n=1" case) but there is a DO resident at New York Presbyterian Emergency Medicine. As you all know, NYP is a very high caliber medical center so it's great to see DO's enter these programs.

NYU undergrad

 

[AlteredScale]

NYU undergrad

You really think undergrad mattered in this context?

 

[DoctorSynthesis]

You really think undergrad mattered in this context?

No just cool to see

 

[Awesome Sauceome]

Something interesting that I experienced...

I shadowed a DO in peds. I ended up alone at several times talking with/shadowing some of his MD colleagues. They said that what they (MDs) do is the exact same thing as what he (DO) does and that I am smart for not busting hard for the MD by retaking my MCAT/postbacc etc. They confirmed that my app is good enough to become a doctor and the financial rewards for starting earlier are far more valuable than postponing my application to get an MD behind my name.. again this is specifically referring to practicing medicine where they do the exact same thing.

I then shadowed a DO ortho surgeon. The surgical center that he practices at is only for ortho surgeons and there are approximately 20-30 surgeons working each day. He is the only DO surgeon that practices there ( I will add he has been out of residency for like 15 years). I got there about 20 minutes before the surgeon I was shadowing did. I ended up chatting with some of the MDs (some of them looked like they were like low 30s so possibly barely out of residency) and they were joking with me about the DO surgeon. They were like "I heard he didnt go to REAL medical school." Stuff like that (which I found ironic since he went to CCOM, arguably the best DO school)... But he ended up doing what I gathered to be several very complicated procedures that day which resulted in some of the other surgeons congratulating him and discussing details with him. So its tough to tell if they were just messing with me in the beginning or if they were serious. I honestly had a hard time understanding the surgeon "humor" sometimes, and even the DO that I shadowed was pretty salty heh (for instance one time he told me to F*ck off when I asked him for a letter of rec but then said he was messing and had no problem writing one haha...? #funny/scary/awkward)... The surgeons there mess with each other A LOT but most of them are sort of A-holes about it, and honestly I just wasnt used to that sort of stuff haha. Most likely this is because I naturally am not an A-hole and also dont like casually talking about ACDC and led zeplin while cutting someone's femur in half with a buzz saw. But I am rambling now haha....

So long story short.... Besides realizing that I definitely fit in with the peds crowd better, the summary of this ramble is that I believe the bias is very specialty dependent. You end up in FM, IM, peds, Gas or EM or something like that and you wont hear a peep. Seriously... not one peep. You try and get in the surgical world and you might get a comment or two on rare occasions and you will likely get some stigma while applying for residency, but honestly thats about it. You will very likely get more heat for just being stupid or lazy than for the letters after your name (that is, after you have proven yourself).

If ever you feel that the crap on SDN is getting too strong, just step outside and shadow a DO for a week or two and you will remember that 90% of what is said on these forums are from the opinion of ignorant, panicky pre-meds.

 

[ToKingdomCome]

1. DO school is essentially MD school lite
No. Osteopathic school curriculum is the same as allopathic, except osteopathic students take an additional class. It is the same rigor, and graduates of both MD and DO have the same end point: A doctor.

2. All DO grads go into primary care.
Wrong. More so than MD grads, but I've seen/know of/met DO vascular surgeons, neurosurgeons, dermatologists, plastic surgeons, general surgeons, anesthesiologists, etc.

3. Everyone at a DO school just didn't get into MD school.
I have a friend from undergrad who had a 4.0 (Exactly. He showed me his transcript) with exceptional MCAT scores who got into a few MD and a few DO schools. He went to a DO school because he wanted to stay close to home. It was also the cheapest option. He is one of the smartest people I know.

4. Osteopathic doctors almost always work in rural regions.
No. Osteopathic doctors work at academic medical centers, in large cities, in rural towns, and in specialty centers. Wherever you can find MDs, you can probably find DOs too.

5. "Prestigious" places won't hire osteopathic doctors.
Tell that to the 100 osteopathic doctors working at the Cleveland clinic. Maybe one of the former surgeon generals of the army would like to hear that too. Maybe the current chief medical officer for the US Coast Guard. Also some of the olympic chief medical officers.

Thank you

 

[TactFR44]

Something interesting that I experienced...

I shadowed a DO in peds. I ended up alone at several times talking with/shadowing some of his MD colleagues. They said that what they (MDs) do is the exact same thing as what he (DO) does and that I am smart for not busting hard for the MD by retaking my MCAT/postbacc etc. They confirmed that my app is good enough to become a doctor and the financial rewards for starting earlier are far more valuable than postponing my application to get an MD behind my name.. again this is specifically referring to practicing medicine where they do the exact same thing.

I then shadowed a DO ortho surgeon. The surgical center that he practices at is only for ortho surgeons and there are approximately 20-30 surgeons working each day. He is the only DO surgeon that practices there ( I will add he has been out of residency for like 15 years). I got there about 20 minutes before the surgeon I was shadowing did. I ended up chatting with some of the MDs (some of them looked like they were like low 30s so possibly barely out of residency) and they were joking with me about the DO surgeon. They were like "I heard he didnt go to REAL medical school." Stuff like that (which I found ironic since he went to CCOM, arguably the best DO school)... But he ended up doing what I gathered to be several very complicated procedures that day which resulted in some of the other surgeons congratulating him and discussing details with him. So its tough to tell if they were just messing with me in the beginning or if they were serious. I honestly had a hard time understanding the surgeon "humor" sometimes, and even the DO that I shadowed was pretty salty heh (for instance one time he told me to F*ck off when I asked him for a letter of rec but then said he was messing and had no problem writing one haha...? #funny/scary/awkward)... The surgeons there mess with each other A LOT but most of them are sort of A-holes about it, and honestly I just wasnt used to that sort of stuff haha. Most likely this is because I naturally am not an A-hole and also dont like casually talking about ACDC and led zeplin while cutting someone's femur in half with a buzz saw. But I am rambling now haha....

So long story short.... Besides realizing that I definitely fit in with the peds crowd better, the summary of this ramble is that I believe the bias is very specialty dependent. You end up in FM, IM, peds, Gas or EM or something like that and you wont hear a peep. Seriously... not one peep. You try and get in the surgical world and you might get a comment or two on rare occasions and you will likely get some stigma while applying for residency, but honestly thats about it. You will very likely get more heat for just being stupid or lazy than for the letters after your name (that is, after you have proven yourself).

If ever you feel that the crap on SDN is getting too strong, just step outside and shadow a DO for a week or two and you will remember that 90% of what is said on these forums are from the opinion of ignorant, panicky pre-meds.

Awesome post. Thanks for sharing.