Osteopathic school's mission statement pushes primary care. Do I need to change my expectations?

[Dr. Premed]

I want to specialize but school promotes primary care. Will I get rejected if I say I may not want to go into primary care?

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[popopopop]

Recent topic here with some advice already.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...ith-primary-care-focus.1227645/#post-18268256

 

[OrdinaryDO]

No..also, why is it that everyone thinks you can't specialize in primary care? Some of the most sought after specialists are primary care fellowship positions (Cardiology, Ob/Gym, Internal Medicine). Let's just start by saying that all D.O. Schools have a focus on primary care for the most part. However, many realize and even take pride in the specialities their students go into. You won't hurt yourself by saying you want to specialize, but at least show some interest in primary care, heck you may like it in the end anyways.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Just say you don't know what you want to do. Rejecting PC outright and admitting it to schools that focus on PC is foolish. Even though I'm pretty sure I want to specialize at every interview I have had I just say that I have varied interests and am looking forward to finding the best field for me.

 

[cliquesh]

You shouldn't go to a DO school if you're not interested in primary care at all.

 

[Dr. Premed]

You shouldn't go to a DO school if you're not interested in primary care at all.

So you're saying only MDs can specialize and have no interest in primary care? That's harsh

 

[OrdinaryDO]

You can go to a D.O. School without having even the least bit of interest in primary care. Almost every DO school functions in the same manner of other MD and DO schools by having 2 years of teaching and 2 years of rotation. There are only a few DO schools, however, that place requirements for extra primary care rotations to graduate. Otherwise, it's nothing big.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

So you're saying only MDs can specialize and have no interest in primary care? That's harsh

No, but depending on what you want to do (i.e. It always seems to be ortho) going to a DO school puts you at a big disadvantage. With the merger coming going to a DO school means that there is a chance you end up in PC. If you really have no interest in PC then going to a DO school isn't the smartest move. Unless it is your only option of course. What type of specialization are you thinking about?

Edit: for example, being "surgery or bust" at a DO school is stupid. If you are thinking something like anesthesia or PMR then you'll be ok.

 

[Dr. Premed]

No, but depending on what you want to do (i.e. It always seems to be ortho) going to a DO school puts you at a big disadvantage. With the merger coming going to a DO school means that there is a chance you end up in PC. If you really have no interest in PC then going to a DO school isn't the smartest move. Unless it is your only option of course. What type of specialization are you thinking about?

Edit: for example, being "surgery or bust" at a DO school is stupid. If you are thinking something like anesthesia or PMR then you'll be ok.

Neuro, Cardio, and Onco. I've shadowed DOs in all three

 

[OrdinaryDO]

The merger will help DOs, too. If you are a good student with good board scores then general surgery is easily feasible. However, primary care is a very good field to go into (internal medicine, Ob/Gyn, Cardiology, Pediatrics).

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Neuro, Cardio, and Onco. I've shadowed DOs in all three

Neurology? Very doable as a DO

Cards- my understanding is that the hard part will be getting an academic university level IM residency, but it os doable. 2/3 of DOs that applied for cards got a spot.

Onc- like heme/Onc? I have no idea but I assume it is somewhat like cards. If you mean Rad Onc then that is a steep uphill battle.

In your interviews I would still just say you don't know and have varied interests at the moment.

 

[cliquesh]

So you're saying only MDs can specialize and have no interest in primary care? That's harsh

No. Im in anesthesia, so obviously that isn't true. I'm saying going to a DO school and ending up in primary care is a realistic possibility. You should accept that. If you cannot live with that then maybe an osteopathic school isn't for you. If you are "neurosurgery or bust" you will likely be disappointed. However, with that said, medicine is a large and diverse field, and, if you are flexible, I think most people can find a rewarding career as an osteopathic physician despite any limitations.

 

[Goro]

Far better to say "I have an open mind". About 40-50% of my grads specialize. Overall, about 30% of DO grads specialize (you can see who goes where by looking at match lists).

But you need to be comfortable with the idea that you're more likely to go into Primary Care.

BTW, Primary Care is not the 7th Circle of Hell pre-meds make it out to be, either.

I want to specialize but school promotes primary care. Will I get rejected if I say I may not want to go into primary care?

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

BTW, Primary Care is not the 7th Circle of Hell pre-meds make it out to be, either.

It's definitely tempting for me right now, I could live in a rural area (a plus for me), pull in 250k+, and have decent hours. These are the things my wife throws at me to try and convince me. If I do something like OBgyn I can even have a surgical component.

 

[Peach Newport]

Hey guys, you do realize that "specialty" doesn't mean the same thing as "competitive," right?

There's this ridiculous meme going around SDN that DO makes it hard to do "anything but primary care." And to back that up, they cite the lack of DOs going into... Derm, Ortho, ENT, RadOnc?

To SDN, there are only 2 choices in medicine: Slaving away in primary care working long hours for peanuts, or living the high life as a plastic surgeon.

The fields of Anesthesia, Psychiatry, Emergency Medicine, PM+R, Neurology, Radiology, Pathology, OB/GYN, Pulmonology, Critical Care, Nephrology, endocrinology, rheumatology, and General Surgery might as well not exist.

These are all specializations that lots of DOs go into (or at least aren't "Derm level" competitive.)If you're a decent student you have a shot at getting into these things, no matter where you went to school.

"specialization" does not mean "DOs need not apply."

 

[Dr. Premed]

Hey guys, you do realize that "specialty" doesn't mean the same thing as "competitive," right?

There's this ridiculous meme going around SDN that DO makes it hard to do "anything but primary care." And to back that up, they cite the lack of DOs going into... Derm, Ortho, ENT, RadOnc?

To SDN, there are only 2 choices in medicine: Slaving away in primary care working long hours for peanuts, or living the high life as a plastic surgeon.

The fields of Anesthesia, Psychiatry, Emergency Medicine, PM+R, Neurology, Radiology, Pathology, OB/GYN, Pulmonology, Critical Care, Nephrology, endocrinology, rheumatology, and General Surgery might as well not exist.

These are all specializations that lots of DOs go into (or at least aren't "Derm level" competitive.)If you're a decent student you have a shot at getting into these things, no matter where you went to school.

"specialization" does not mean "DOs need not apply."

There are many on SDN that equate DO with Family Med / Internal Med. But now if you got your MD from the Caribbean that's fine

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Hey guys, you do realize that "specialty" doesn't mean the same thing as "competitive," right?

There's this ridiculous meme going around SDN that DO makes it hard to do "anything but primary care." And to back that up, they cite the lack of DOs going into... Derm, Ortho, ENT, RadOnc?

To SDN, there are only 2 choices in medicine: Slaving away in primary care working long hours for peanuts, or living the high life as a plastic surgeon.

The fields of Anesthesia, Psychiatry, Emergency Medicine, PM+R, Neurology, Radiology, Pathology, OB/GYN, Pulmonology, Critical Care, Nephrology, endocrinology, rheumatology, and General Surgery might as well not exist.

These are all specializations that lots of DOs go into (or at least aren't "Derm level" competitive.)If you're a decent student you have a shot at getting into these things, no matter where you went to school.

"specialization" does not mean "DOs need not apply."

That's why I asked what he meant by specialization. Most of the time when people talk like that they mean the competitive fields, or just ortho specifically. You are right on though, there are definitely plenty of specialized fields that average DOs can match into

 

[Scrubs101]

It's definitely tempting for me right now, I could live in a rural area (a plus for me), pull in 250k+, and have decent hours. These are the things my wife throws at me to try and convince me. If I do something like OBgyn I can even have a surgical component.

It's definitely tempting for me right now, I could live in a rural area (a plus for me), pull in 250k+, and have decent hours. These are the things my wife throws at me to try and convince me. If I do something like OBgyn I can even have a surgical component.

Dont some rural areas have loan forgiveness benefits too?

I have a close family friend working in a beautiful part of Montana that was sold on rural primary care due to whats listed above. She loves it there.

Like goro said PC and rural med arent some curse wretched life as some people make it out to be lol.

OP if you go to DO school and want to go for a competitive residency all i have to say is "shoot for the moon and even if u miss youll still be among the stars" #SoMotivational


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[AnatomyGrey12]

Dont some rural areas have loan forgiveness benefits too?

I have a close family friend working in a beautiful part of Montana that was sold on rural primary care due to whats listed above. She loves it there.

Like goro said PC and rural med arent some curse wretched life as some people make it out to be lol.

OP if you go to DO school and want to go for a competitive residency all i have to say is "shoot for the moon and even if u miss youll still be among the stars" #SoMotivational


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

Yeah they do. Another advantage of a rural area regardless of field is that COL is generally way lower. 250k goes a lot farther in a rural place than 500k will in a major metropolitan area.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Dont some rural areas have loan forgiveness benefits too?

I have a close family friend working in a beautiful part of Montana that was sold on rural primary care due to whats listed above. She loves it there.

Like goro said PC and rural med arent some curse wretched life as some people make it out to be lol.

OP if you go to DO school and want to go for a competitive residency all i have to say is "shoot for the moon and even if u miss youll still be among the stars" #SoMotivational


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

Except that the closest star is 93,000,000 miles away, and the moon is only 238,900. #debbiedowner

 

[Scrubs101]

Except that the closest star is 93,000,000 miles away, and the moon is only 238,900. #debbiedowner

Those pesky facts lmao


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[deleted600623]

It's definitely tempting for me right now, I could live in a rural area (a plus for me), pull in 250k+, and have decent hours. These are the things my wife throws at me to try and convince me. If I do something like OBgyn I can even have a surgical component.

This is my life. I still have a passion for subspecializing in cards or GI but could DEFINITELY see myself in primary care in a rural setting (which is what I where I want to be anyway) I'm all about lifestyle while bringing in 250k easy.

 

[Jim Hopper]

It's definitely tempting for me right now, I could live in a rural area (a plus for me), pull in 250k+, and have decent hours. These are the things my wife throws at me to try and convince me. If I do something like OBgyn I can even have a surgical component.

Could rural IM pull in those figures too or are you speaking about OBgyn specifically?

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Could rural IM pull in those figures too or are you speaking about OBgyn specifically?

I was just talking PC in general. Rural IM could definitely make that much in the right place and right hours. OB could probably pull north of 300k if you had a practice with some good surgery numbers. This is just what I've been told though, I definitely don't have any first hand experience.

 

[Geo16]

Except that the closest star is 93,000,000 miles away, and the moon is only 238,900. #debbiedowner

Except you'll travel close miles to that number and you are still a stardust anyway. #downer'smotivation

 

[CCmetal94]

Could rural IM pull in those figures too or are you speaking about OBgyn specifically?

I scribe in a rural area and the ER and IM docs all pull 350k-500k. Only 45 mins outside a major city too.

 

[deleted600623]

I scribe in a rural area and the ER and IM docs all pull 350k-500k. Only 45 mins outside a major city too.

Wow...I guess that answers my question about whether it would be worth it to specialize in IM or just do a FM residency.

 

[CCmetal94]

Wow...I guess that answers my question about whether it would be worth it to specialize in IM or just do a FM residency.

I don't know if that the case everywhere and going rural certainly has its trade-offs, but the rural docs I work with seem to like it and live pretty lavishly.

 

[deleted600623]

@CCmetal94 For sure. That's how they get docs into those rural areas though. Gotta pay the money.

 

[CCmetal94]

@CCmetal94 For sure. That's how they get docs into those rural areas though. Gotta pay the money.

Exactly. The ER I work at had trouble getting an ER doc staffed one night when I was working so they paid this doc $600/hr for a 12 hour shift to come in. He made a years worth of my rent in a single shift...