Why the DO hate?

[Flank Pain]

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Regarding the thread closed earlier,

I used to think DO's were mostly people who could not get into an MD school, but whether that is true or not I gained a different perspective on them during medical school. During several of my primary care rotations I worked with DO as well as MD's and I think that the differences in the DO education really made a difference with some patients, such as chronic pain, Rx drug addicted, chronic pelvic pain, chronic low back pain and those with these problems combined with psychiatric disorders. Perhaps as a premed I didn't realize how prevelant these problems are in primary care practice, but they are prevelant and if you do not have the tools skills and patience to deal with them they can destroy your life, your practice and your job satisfaction. The fact that DO often had a different explanation and a different take on these problems sometimes DID make a difference in the quality of these patients lives. I think that DO's are and will continue to be an important part of the primary care medical world and I think that this is critical to continued quality patient care and satisfaction in this country. So much of primary care stands to be taken over by PA and NP as the procedural and technical aspects of what we once called "general practice" is parred further down toward what we now call "family medicine" that there is a risk that no MD's will be doing this practice in a few dozen years. I think that it is still important for patients to get to see a physican and I think that the DO schools are critical to maintaining this link with our patients and ensuring that they get quality care. 🙂 I would certainly go and take my family to a PCP who was a DO, so I think it is important that they be treated with the same respect as an MD, something that I will admit that at one point I didn't think, but we all have the right to grow and change our perspective. I do also think that it is important for the debate to exist on the place of DO's because you will see that in the real world there are sterotypes, there is prejudice about the training and place of osteopathic physicians, no matter how many threads are closed or how many opinions are attriuted to trolling and not a real issue that deserves to be addressed.

 

[apumic]

Absolutely agreed. 👍👍👍

 

[ChiDO]

I love the pre-med forums...best forums ever..🙄

 

[familyaerospace]

I don't hate DOs. My PCP is a DO (from MSU-COM). I often have to defend him for not being what my parents think is a "real" doctor. He is the best family doctor that I've ever had and he is my first DO (the others were very very incompetent MDs).

My thoughts are so as long as they are decent doctors, know what tests to order, can write my 'scripts, listen to me, have something that passes for a bedside manner, and take my insurance, I couldn't care less about what degrees they have after their name.

That being said, I am still trying to go MD although I will likely add a few DO schools into the mix. I don't object to learning something from them.

 

[vin5cent0]

I'm not going to read what you wrote because, well, I value my eyes more than that. Use paragraphs if you want it read.

I'll answer your primary question, though. Most pre-meds, from what I've seen, have a very large ego. They won't "settle" for anything less than M.D.

For me, I would go D.O if I couldn't get into an allo school. It wouldn't be a huge issue for me. That being said, I don't really feel like explaining why I'm not an M.D to all of my future patients, so I would prefer allo in the end.

 

[Flank Pain]

I'm not going to read what you wrote because, well, I value my eyes more than that. Use paragraphs if you want it read.

I'll answer your primary question, though. Most pre-meds, from what I've seen, have a very large ego. They won't "settle" for anything less than M.D.

For me, I would go D.O if I couldn't get into an allo school. It wouldn't be a huge issue for me. That being said, I don't really feel like explaining why I'm not an M.D to all of my future patients, so I would prefer allo in the end.

I think the nature of your prejudice is inherent in your answer. "Less than and MD", I think that this is an unfair statement. DO's are different than MD's, that does not mean that they are "less".

I can already tell this thread is going to go to straight to hell. Perhaps you will all have a better perspective on it when you realize how totally worthless college and the first two years of medical school are to actually taking care of patients, the sickest of whom, the ones who need your help the most, don't even know that you are there.

 

[munchymanRX]

Absolutely agree with the OP. I had the opportunity to speak at length with a DO during the course of my applications, and I learned a lot.

-The prejudices against DOs seem to exist largely at the pre-medical level, likely the result of poor understanding about the profession or inflated egos derived from intense competition amongst peers.

-Many patients actually prefer DOs as their PCP, precisely for the reasons stated in a couple of the above posts. While many don't know what a DO is, exactly, most are extremely receptive to a more holistic approach to primary care.

-Aside from the addition of OMM training, the education is virtually identical to an allopathic program.

 

[orthomyxo]

Right? Some pre-meds are total douches. They need to step off of their MD high horse and recognize that a DO is just as qualified to practice medicine.

 

[jvesco22]

Absolutely agree with the OP. I had the opportunity to speak at length with a DO during the course of my applications, and I learned a lot.

-The prejudices against DOs seem to exist largely at the pre-medical level, likely the result of poor understanding about the profession or inflated egos derived from intense competition amongst peers.

-Many patients actually prefer DOs as their PCP, precisely for the reasons stated in a couple of the above posts. While many don't know what a DO is, exactly, most are extremely receptive to a more holistic approach to primary care.

-Aside from the addition of OMM training, the education is virtually identical to an allopathic program.

Based on your studies and expert opinion I assume?

 

[Catalystik]

I can already tell this thread is going to go to straight to hell.

You can PM a mod and ask them to close it if you don't want to see it go downhill.

 

[GoSpursGo]

Closed per the request of the OP.