What is OMM used for?

[hallowmann]

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From what I understand and this issue, I do not see how the merger could benefit us, and will even harm us if they do not successfully prevent MD student from applying to our residency spots. For instance, many DO students depend on those already-limited 100 osteopathic ortho spots in order to fulfill their dreams to become orthopedic surgeons, and their dreams would take a big hit if we were to add MD competition to the mix. And at the present the system allows us to try to match at highly competitive DO spots while having an ACGME back up (which is a huge huge huge huge advantage), I feel the merger could prevent this from happening anymore.

Another theory of the merger is that DO residency positions will simply go under the ACGME umbrella, and MD students would be prevented from applying to DO residency positions. This makes even less sense, why go under the ACGME umbrella if functionally everything will stay status quo, except adding another layer of bureaucracy (ACGME) to the already bureaucratic nature of AOA?

To me, the proposed merger seems to be more reactionary towards ACGME trying to clamp down on Carib students applying to their residencies, but ACGME's wording on such issue made it so that DO students would be inevitably affected too. There's gotta be a better way to go about this.

The main DO benefit would be that DOs who attend DO residencies would be able to then attend ACGME fellowships, because their residencies would be ACGME accredited. With the ACGME putting the restriction in place that only physicians that complete ACGME accredited residencies can apply to ACGME accredited fellowships, the DOs at DO residencies intending to subspecialize basically get screwed over.

Without a merger, DO residencies will be less desirable for those who want to subspecialize and would probably lose more prestige and success.

As far as the letting MD's apply to DO residencies thing, I think that is something that has to happen. That being said, there are ways to do this in order to maintain a DO preference, or at least put OMM training restrictions on those residencies. In that case, only the MDs that are really interested in OMM would apply, and in turn the DO profession/philosophy would probably gain more acceptance and recognition.

There's no real move that is all pros for DOs. If the merger happens, DO's get to keep the ACGME fellowships, but they lose exclusively DO residencies, but if it doesn't happen DO residencies will lose competitiveness and prestige, and almost half of all DO graduates (the ones going to AOA residencies) will be barred from subspecializing in ACGME fellowships. Personally, I think I'd prefer the slight increase in residency competition to the loss of ACGME fellowships for DOs at AOA residencies, but that's me.

A standardized GME can be achieved without merger, it just needs consensus. Additionally, As we worry about GME, perhaps we should also standardize LCME and COCA accreditation criteria?

If a DO graduate wants to pursue fellowship opportunities, under the current rule, he /she is still very welcomed to apply to one. Even if ACGME and AOA are merged, the attitude of residency directors over at mid to high tier currently-ACGME programs towards us probably wont change. I feel that it is inevitable that DO students will still have stigma attached. So I am not exactly sure where you are going with this point.

I kind of agree with the idea of an LCME and COCA merger. I personally would like it if a few of the requirements that the LCME has with regards to clinical education were required at DO schools as well.

Like I said, the new ACGME requirement that ACGME fellowships only accept applicants who have completed ACGME residencies hurts DO's in AOA residencies. Unless something has changed recently, that rule is still going into place.

There are ongoing discussions, but I would not tell anyone that it is going to happen yet. We just don't know.

Its not happening until it happens. I'm waiting until 2015/2018 to know for sure.

 

[Didierdrogba]

Right but as I said, the ACGME fellowship directors KNOW which programs are formerly AOA, wouldn't they discriminate based on this?

I don't have the numbers but it seems like only a small number of people will eventually pursue fellowship, where as everybody needs residency. Having MD's encroaching on osteopathic residency spots hurts us all, where as if we just give up on the fellowship thing only hurts some of us.

i dunno im not an expert on this, just making my concern be known. correct me if im wrong

 

[darklabel]

Right but as I said, the ACGME fellowship directors KNOW which programs are formerly AOA, wouldn't they discriminate based on this?

I don't have the numbers but it seems like only a small number of people will eventually pursue fellowship, where as everybody needs residency. Having MD's encroaching on osteopathic residency spots hurts us all, where as if we just give up on the fellowship thing only hurts some of us.

i dunno im not an expert on this, just making my concern be known. correct me if im wrong

Could always say "You have to take the COMLEX for the AOA spots"

Let's see how many MD's would apply for those AOA spots

 

[Didierdrogba]

Could always say "You have to take the COMLEX for the AOA spots"

Let's see how many MD's would apply for those AOA spots

If they want that ortho spot bad enough....