What would you do?

[pbehzad]

Ok well tonite me and some buddies were out on study dates with orgo kim and i asked them if you dont make it to med school would you apply to a DO school. well one of my friends was like i would reapply the following year, and keep trying. some of my other friends were like no, and would just give up on the med school thing. NOW before i go any further i do not see MDs and DOs differently. My physician back home is a DO, so im not trying to belittle anyone or any medical ideology. Now i was thinking well if these people want to become dr.s why would they not apply to do school or are people just wanting md because of the name and prestige it carries? i know common perception among alot of uneducated people is DOs are secondary to MDs, which is BS. i think if you really want to be a dr. and cant get into a MD med school, then DO is a legit way to go, i mean MD and DO do the same thing as far as patient care (im not talkign about specialties). If you really want "to help people" and cant get into md why not go do? Im sure this MD vs DO conversation has shown up a billion times before, but im just wondering what everyone else would do? Would you go DO, i mean personally i think DOs are more dedicated to being doctors because they have to put up with more peoples **** about their degree then mds do?

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[Samoa]

I don't think I could convince an admissions committee that I think OMM is a legitimate form of medical therapy. Your opinion may differ, and that's fine.

 

[secretstang19]

I definitely wouldn't have any problem with going DO. My doctor is a DO, too, and he practices medicine the same way that a family doc MD would. I want to go into primary care and work in a rural area, so I don't think being a DO would affect my career plans much (although I did only apply to allopathic schools).

The only thing is, I'm not sure that it's THAT much easier to get into osteopathic schools than allopathic. It is statistically a bit easier, but not as much as you might think, especially if you're an out-of-stater applying to an osteopathic school (most of which are state-supported).

 

[turbon]

"i know common perception among alot of uneducated people is DOs are secondary to MDs, which is BS. "

I know many people that went DO b/c they couldn't get into an MD program in US.

Do you think that they think MD is superior to DO?

 

[Random Access]

Will someone summarize the difference between osteopathy and allopathy? Or at least post a good link that does?...


-RA

 

[SMW]

Osteopathy emphasizes palpatory diagnosis and manipulative therapy. Kind of like a GP who also does chiropractic. Although, not all DO are GPs. One of the best dermatologists in Anchorage is a DO, and MDs refer to him all the time. Here's a link.

 

[BananaSplit]

I think one biggest considerations is whether you want to work outside the US or not. If you ever want to work for the UN, the Red Cross, or Doctors without Borders, or provide relief in some sort of catastrophe outside the US, it's better to be an MD. Most other countries won't recognize a DO degree by itself, and someone with an MD will have to sign off on documents for you.

BananaSplit

 

[Street Philosopher]

Originally posted by BananaSplit
I think one biggest considerations is whether you want to work outside the US or not. If you ever want to work for the UN, the Red Cross, or Doctors without Borders, or provide relief in some sort of catastrophe outside the US, it's better to be an MD. Most other countries won't recognize a DO degree by itself, and someone with an MD will have to sign off on documents for you.

BananaSplit

that sucks.

On the original topic, I think that for many people, and myself included, medicine offers so much more than just helping people or playing doctor. There are many things to think about, and prestige is a factor for many. But more importantly in this case, is not so much the degree of prestige, but the public perception that a DO is a second-chance MD of sorts. That is, it's not so much that people are worried about not getting the prestige that they want, it's more about avoiding the stigma of DO, whether deserved or not. At least, that's my guess.