Questions about LORs from NP and from DME as DO

[wannabeOBGYN]

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Hey all, I have a question about NP's writing LORs for residency. I'm currently doing a rotation in my specialty of choice, but I spend the vast majority of my time with an NP. Would it even be worth my time to ask her for a letter? Will PD's consider it useless since it's not written by a physician? Would it instead be acceptable to perhaps ask her to write a letter and have one of the doctors sign off on it? The doctors all know me since I did a previous rotation on the floors with them and this is essentially to get more time in the office, so it wouldn't be like they're signing for someone they've only briefly met but never worked with.

Also, question for the DOs who have gone the AOA residency route: Would a letter from the DME where I'm doing my rotations count as a letter from a DO even if I haven't rotated with them? The DME here keeps in close touch with all the physicians working with students and we've gone over all of my rotation evaluations together, so he could comment on my progress over the year, how I've done in general, etc., but obviously not give any personal experiences working with me. I haven't had a chance to work with any other DOs so I'm worried I'll be screwed if this doesn't count. I'm trying to set up away rotations for August and beyond but I don't know when the cutoffs are yet or how appropriate it is to get LORs from one program and send them to other programs.

Thanks for your input!

 

[Winged Scapula]

Hey all, I have a question about NP's writing LORs for residency. I'm currently doing a rotation in my specialty of choice, but I spend the vast majority of my time with an NP. Would it even be worth my time to ask her for a letter? Will PD's consider it useless since it's not written by a physician? Would it instead be acceptable to perhaps ask her to write a letter and have one of the doctors sign off on it? The doctors all know me since I did a previous rotation on the floors with them and this is essentially to get more time in the office, so it wouldn't be like they're signing for someone they've only briefly met but never worked with.

No, it is not acceptable IMHO.

The LORs are to be documentation of your ability to successfully complete your residency in your field of choice. An NP may have worked with many residents, but she has never DONE a residency (despite what they like you to think) and therefore, he/she is not qualified to judge your ability to perform as a resident in X specialty as they cannot know what is required, the depth of knowledge, skill, etc.

It would be beyond the pale to have a letter from anyone other than a physician; even letters from pre-clinical PhDs are not as valued unless they played a *significant* role in your education (such as Dissertation Chair for an MD-PhD). You do not want to be special. You do not want your application to stand out for its differentness. You do not want PDs and faculty to wonder why you couldn't get a letter from an MD/DO.

Please note that I am not asking why you are doing a medical school rotation and spending the "majority" of your time with an allied health employee rather than a physician.

 

[wannabeOBGYN]

No, it is not acceptable IMHO.

The LORs are to be documentation of your ability to successfully complete your residency in your field of choice. An NP may have worked with many residents, but she has never DONE a residency (despite what they like you to think) and therefore, he/she is not qualified to judge your ability to perform as a resident in X specialty as they cannot know what is required, the depth of knowledge, skill, etc.

It would be beyond the pale to have a letter from anyone other than a physician; even letters from pre-clinical PhDs are not as valued unless they played a *significant* role in your education (such as Dissertation Chair for an MD-PhD). You do not want to be special. You do not want your application to stand out for its differentness. You do not want PDs and faculty to wonder why you couldn't get a letter from an MD/DO.

Please note that I am not asking why you are doing a medical school rotation and spending the "majority" of your time with an allied health employee rather than a physician.

Thank you for your input. I figured as much but like to get opinions.

I know you're not asking, but I'll answer in brief anyway. I'm not happy about the situation but I'm dealing with it. Suffice it to say I try to make my own opportunities whenever possible. I wish I could say this is my first month working with a non-doc, but it's not. I guess that's the downfall to choosing a new rotation site in a small seasonal town. :-\ Nothing I can do now. The bright side is that this year has really taught me to be proactive in my education, something I probably should have picked up a long time ago. Better late than never, I suppose.

 

[mig26x]

If LOR from fellow's and senior residents have zero weight I dont know what weight does a LOR from a NP/RN has.

and I also question why are you spending more time with a non MD/DO person in your rotation.

 

[Buzz Me]

Agree with the above. Is there any way you could spend more time working with a physician in your clinical rotation? Seems ridiculous that it would be any other way...

 

[JaggerPlate]

Have you contacted you school/the clinical education department and let them know that you're spending all your time with non-physicians?

 

[goooooober]

Hey all, I have a question about NP's writing LORs for residency. I'm currently doing a rotation in my specialty of choice, but I spend the vast majority of my time with an NP. Would it even be worth my time to ask her for a letter? Will PD's consider it useless since it's not written by a physician? Would it instead be acceptable to perhaps ask her to write a letter and have one of the doctors sign off on it? The doctors all know me since I did a previous rotation on the floors with them and this is essentially to get more time in the office, so it wouldn't be like they're signing for someone they've only briefly met but never worked with.

Also, question for the DOs who have gone the AOA residency route: Would a letter from the DME where I'm doing my rotations count as a letter from a DO even if I haven't rotated with them? The DME here keeps in close touch with all the physicians working with students and we've gone over all of my rotation evaluations together, so he could comment on my progress over the year, how I've done in general, etc., but obviously not give any personal experiences working with me. I haven't had a chance to work with any other DOs so I'm worried I'll be screwed if this doesn't count. I'm trying to set up away rotations for August and beyond but I don't know when the cutoffs are yet or how appropriate it is to get LORs from one program and send them to other programs.

Thanks for your input!

LOL! You might as well have your mama write you a letter, it will bear more weight.

If you can't get a physician to support you, then there is a problem with you. That is how you will be viewed.

Please Please Please, do not redicule yourself and your profession by getting some know-nothing NP to write you a letter. Grow some, and get some.

Good luck.

PS-Agree with Jagg, let the people in charge of your ed know, you are learning from the WRONG people, ASAP.

 

[Taurus]

Please post the name of the school as public service to warn others to not go there. The school is totally screwing you over. The tuition you're paying is the same as throwing money down the toilet

 

[lockjaw]

LOL! You might as well have your mama write you a letter, it will bear more weight.

If you can't get a physician to support you, then there is a problem with you. That is how you will be viewed.

Please Please Please, do not redicule yourself and your profession by getting some know-nothing NP to write you a letter. Grow some, and get some.

Good luck.

PS-Agree with Jagg, let the people in charge of your ed know, you are learning from the WRONG people, ASAP.

I know there tends to be a lot of animosity on these forums towards the growing role of midlevels in health care, but I think this is uncalled for. Yes, the OP should of course ideally be working with a physician and getting LORs from physicians, but that doesn't mean that the NP knows nothing and is unable to teach the OP absolutely anything valuable at all.

 

[Taurus]

I know there tends to be a lot of animosity on these forums towards the growing role of midlevels in health care, but I think this is uncalled for. Yes, the OP should of course ideally be working with a physician and getting LORs from physicians, but that doesn't mean that the NP knows nothing and is unable to teach the OP absolutely anything valuable at all.

I think you're missing the point. An experienced medical assistant who has 1 year of post-high school education can teach a medical student a thing or two. Heck, a bum down the street can too. But that won't get the medical student the residency he/she wants. Spending nearly your entire clinical rotations with a midlevel is a disservice to your education and your aspirations for residency.

 

[lockjaw]

I think you're missing the point. An experienced medical assistant who has 1 year of post-high school education can teach a medical student a thing or two. Heck, a bum down the street can too. But that won't get the medical student the residency he/she wants. Spending nearly your entire clinical rotations with a midlevel is a disservice to your education and your aspirations for residency.

I'm not disagreeing with that - of course the medical student should be working with a medical doctor as much as possible. I just take offense to the use of "know-nothing," especially since the person who wrote that doesn't know the NP in question.

 

[Socrates25]

I second Taurus. We need to know the name of this ****hole program.

Let me guess, its Rocky Vista or one of the other scab med schools (MD included) who expanded rapidfire over hte last 5 years and who dealt with clinical training slots as an afterthought instead of a carefully designed piece of their curriculum.

Its really the new model of medical education. There's a crapload of "we'll just start up some crappy MD program in the middle of nowhere with no established teaching hospital and then make our med students find their own rotations and farm them out to crappy small rural practices."