Will MD be crazyglued to your name?

Get Your Med School Admissions Questions Answered!
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
I

intoxicatedtiger

Full Member
20+ Year Member
Joined
Sep 29, 2001
Messages
90
Reaction score
2
OK. So I sold this one baseball card on ebay, and I e-mailed the winning bidder to send me his mailing address, and he does. He asks me to send it to O.B. Laden, MD (This isn't his real name). And I'm thinking, "Why the hell did you put MD behind your name? I don't care! I just sold you my Barry Bonds rookie, not some medical equipment or prescription drugs!" I really don't understand, why must MD follow their name in everything they write? So, if some guy at Burger King asked for your name so they could call you when your order is ready, do you say Joe, MD? Sure, I understand that you went through years and years of hell. Good for you! You don't have to let me know. As Matt Foley put it, "that and a nickel will get me a cup of JACK SQUAT!"

This is one thing I intend on never doing when I get those two letters. When I leave the hospital, the MD title will stay, unless some guy on the street suffers a heart attack and needs help. I will not be Brad Pitt, MD 24/7. When I'm not working, I'll just be good ol' average normal Brad Pitt (Sigh). :D

I guess you could consider this a form of medical elitism, since the majority of doctors will do this. Oh well, I can't do anything about that. As long as I don't do that. That's what's important to me.
Members don't see this ad.
 
It's funny you should mention that..
in England, when you go for a "post graduate degree" (i.e, a kind of degree granting fellowship after residency),and finish satisfactorily, you are no longer called by "Doctor"....you are addressed as "Mister"....it is a strange world (in medicine) isn't it?

bytheway....after finishing most postgrduate degrees in meicine in England, you become professor-assitant or otherwise if you choose to go into academia) :cool:
 
It's funny that you say most doctors will put the letters behind their name at all times. I personally would be afraid to do that. I know people will disagree with me, but I find that many people do not like doctors. People often think that MDs are selfish pricks who care a lot about money and golf and nothing about people. The fewer people outside of medicine who know I am a doctor, the better. In fact, when people ask me what my plans are, I usually say "grad school" and never "med school" unless I am pressed. Strange? I don't know.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
It'll only be superglued to my name at my high-school reunion. :wink: :D
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by oldman:
•to each their own! (i'm trying to put up as many posts between me and post 666)•••••Postpadder...
 
I don't really care for the title outside of the hospital. Medicine doesn't define me, so I don't really care for putting MD after my name all the time. My dad absolutely hates telling people that he's an MD, especially when it comes to financial transactions. He's paranoid that people have less respect for your money if you're an MD. To an extent, it's pretty true. He always ends up overpaying for everything.

Recently, we went to a dealership to test drive the M5. Probably the second or third question out of the salesman's mouth was, "So what do you do for a living sir?"

My dad: "I'm in the computer industry." (His standard response whenever pressed about his occupation.) :wink:

Salesman: Oh really? Computers, you say? So that's why you were consulted by my primary care physician during my hospital stay 4 years ago! :D :wink:

Haha!! He didn't even recognize his own patient! <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" /> :D I about died laughing. Granted, he's seen thousands of patients and he can't possibly remember everyone, but still I couldn't stop laughing. Needless to say, we didn't close the deal on that transaction. Moral of the Story: Never lie to a car salesman about your profession. :wink:
 
Superglue MD to your name? Now I know you can superglue just about anything!

Sincerely, That Guy from American Pie 2
 
The worst has to be the MD who has a personalized carplate AND signs everything with an md after his name...and i'm not talking about charts or meds.

one thing i do though is when i need to call someone at their place of employment, and i want to get through quick i say...
good afternoon, may i speak with mr. doe? this is doctor so and so.

works everytime! :wink:
 
i don't think i would attach the MD after my name but what do people think about being called Dr. vyc all the time?

i have a family friend, a very close family friend and we still all call him Dr. Friend. not by his first name nor just Mr. Friend.
it's always Dr.

i think it's a little less pretentious than attaching the MD all the time but still a bit?
 
Sometimes it is best to not give a second thought to these silly things. Whether or not it is pretentious, does it really matter? There are so many things life offers, why focus on such petty things?

Sincerely,
Schoolboy, MD.
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by 8deuce:
•The worst has to be the MD who has a personalized carplate AND signs everything with an md after his name...and i'm not talking about charts or meds. :wink: •••••I have a friend who goes to USC. he bought a car the summer before he matriculated and put USC MED on his license plates. I thought it was pretty ballzy.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Personally, I don't think I would GLUE those two letters to my name, but I would use them when appropriate (perhaps if I were ever to write a letter to the editor of a newspaper regarding some healthcare issue or the like).

Being called Dr. Monkeyrunner, however, is a different story. I'm going to school for all those years, and darn it, I'd like to be acknowledged and respected for that. Close frends are another matter entirely. Besides, Dr. is a much broader term and I think more a sign of respect than an indication of any particular profession.
 
In the words of the wise Dr. Evil: "I did not go to 6 years of EVIL medical school to be called Mr.!"

<img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" />

Why did it take him 6 years!?! I guess EVIL medical school takes a bit longer than the regular type. :D

Totally kidding here! I'll have it on my driver's license, in case I get pulled over. Maybe the cop will cut me some slack? Aside from the driver's license, I don't think I'll use it too much.
 
Bubba is right- cops ALWAYS give doctors a break. Have no idea why, but in my experience it always holds true. Aside from that, i kinda like Trek just fine :) --Trek
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by Trek:
•Bubba is right- cops ALWAYS give doctors a break. Have no idea why, but in my experience it always holds true. Aside from that, i kinda like Trek just fine :) --Trek•••••I'm thinkin its because both are service-related. They realize that docs have to put up with a fair amount of crap from the public as well. That and, should they be injured on the job, they know that a good ER doc / trauma surgeon / whatever other doc they need will be their best friend.

That aside, here's a quick funny cop/doc story told to me by a LA County Sheriff deputy: A doc gets pulled over for speeding. To attempt to get out of the ticket, he waves a stethoscope out the car window. The cop's reply: he simply waves his gun out the window of his patrol car, then proceeds to get out and write the ticket. I guess the moral of this story is be thankful for the good treatment, but don't go around expecting it.
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by UCSFreak:
•I have a friend who goes to USC. he bought a car the summer before he matriculated and put USC MED on his license plates. I thought it was pretty ballzy.•••••I see that car all the time in the structure.

There's a fellow in my lab and whenever he calls anyone - for pizza, his own doctor, the mechanic, he always "this is Dr. So-and-So." It's like 'Doctor' is his first name.

Although it would be nice for my profs in med school to call me Dr. Kutastha. I could live with that. :D
 
I know that this is pretty unorthodox, but. . . when I actually start practicing medicine, I intend to go by my first name with patients & their families. I'm hoping to work with children, and I think that it would alleviate some of their fear if I was more familiar and less of an authority figure. Of course, when first introducing myself to the family, I'll say I'm their doctor. . . but in a children's hospital where I volunteered in London, all of the physicians just went by their first names. It allowed for a greater sense of comraderie among patients, doctors, & other staff.

HOWEVER. . . when I finally meet up again with that pizza face jerk who cheated on me at the junior prom in high school, you can BETTA BELIEVE that I'm slapping the MD at him!! (No, I'm not vengeful. :wink: ) <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" />
 
Hey Papa, here's a funny reversal story. I was working at the Toyota dealership. A little African-American guy pulled up in a pimped out black Civic blasting some island music. No one would wait on him. Unfortunately, the salemen tend to be the stereotyping sort. Anyway, I try not to be, so I waited on him. He picked out the most loaded out Highlander that the owner was driving. Of course, we were chatting and I asked what he was doing in Pensacola since he mentioned he was from the islands. He said he was military. An HOUR later I asked his MOS (job) and he reluctantly said he was a physician. I laughed about his reluctance and he launched into horror stories about telling people what you do, especially to women in bars, etc. Anyway, the look on my co-workers' faces when he bought two cars from me! Those jackasses... :p
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by lamyers:
•Hey Papa, here's a funny reversal story. I was working at the Toyota dealership. A little African-American guy pulled up in a pimped out black Civic blasting some island music. No one would wait on him. Unfortunately, the salemen tend to be the stereotyping sort. Anyway, I try not to be, so I waited on him. He picked out the most loaded out Highlander that the owner was driving. Of course, we were chatting and I asked what he was doing in Pensacola since he mentioned he was from the islands. He said he was military. An HOUR later I asked his MOS (job) and he reluctantly said he was a physician. I laughed about his reluctance and he launched into horror stories about telling people what you do, especially to women in bars, etc. Anyway, the look on my co-workers' faces when he bought two cars from me! Those jackasses... :p •••••That story is awesome, lamyers!!!!! <img src="http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/images/smilies/rotflmao.gif" alt="" />
 
When I called Schwab to open up a trading account the person almost laughed at me because I said I only had a couple thousand to start. But after mentioning that I will be attending medical school this fall the guy was like I hope we can be your brokerage firm.
 
Hey morninglight, I have a pediatrician friend who asks her patients to call her "Aunty!" Goes by her first name with all the little ones---sure makes it easier for them to cope! And for all the reasons you gave...terrific! Good luck to you!!! :clap:
 
I dont see myself putting the MD on my license plate. Many people think docs are "in it for the money" and are loaded. They never think about the years of education,years of residency, all the inconviencies of being on call and the stress of being on a waitlist :wink: . There are many jealous people out there, and with a mindset like that, I could easily imagine some doc getting his car keyed b/c he wanted to flaunt his title.

Women can flaunt what they want, but dont just show me your title :)
 
Did you ever see "Meet the Parents?"

"This is Dr. Bob"

"You can call me Bob...MD!"

Seriously though, as with other titles, people should call you Dr. until you tell them to call you something else. For some reason people resent calling doctors "Dr.," but call all priests "father" (no pun intended <img border="0" title="" alt="[Eek!]" src="eek.gif" /> ), and all cops "officer." I think most people are just jealous: as if we just wanted to be a doctor and signed up and that was that!

It's up to each MD to use his title to his liking.
 
Anybody remember the letter that Hannibal Lecter sent to Clarice in "Hannibal"? He signed his name with 'MD'.

Which is good enough reason for me to avoid following suit.
 
Have you ever noticed that some people not only have MD glued to their names, they have their stethoscopes glued to their head. I can't tell you how many times I've gone into a cafe or a bookstore to see some guy or girl with a stethoscope around their neck. (And these weren't cafes or bookstores within a hospital, the hospital was at least a few blocks away). I mean, come on. It's like they want to shout to the world they're a doctor! (What's unfortunate is that for a lot of guys, this little technique proves effective when picking up women.) I think that the rule should be if you're not going to use it in the near future, put it away, at least in your pocket, unless you are specifically showing it off to pick up on women (I don't think it works for picking up on men).
 
is it true that in some states doctors must have doctor plates?

i saw in NYC that a lot of cars parked outside of mt. sinai had MD on their plates.

•••quote:•••Originally posted by 8deuce:
•The worst has to be the MD who has a personalized carplate AND signs everything with an md after his name...and i'm not talking about charts or meds.

one thing i do though is when i need to call someone at their place of employment, and i want to get through quick i say...
good afternoon, may i speak with mr. doe? this is doctor so and so.

works everytime! :wink: •••••
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by mr_sparkle:
•Anybody remember the letter that Hannibal Lecter sent to Clarice in "Hannibal"? He signed his name with 'MD'.

Which is good enough reason for me to avoid following suit.•••••he went to 6 years of evil medical school.
 
it will be tattoed to my name, especially at family functions!
 
I wont brag in bookstores and cafes

but for 120,000 $ bucks it better be tied to my name...

everytime I email professors...the Phd is tattoed to their name...

I have even seen Registered Nurses RN tattoe it...hey if u have it, then flaunt it that is what i say
 
No, I think I mentioned my reasoning in a thread long ago......In middle school, one of our teachers had her Phd. She always made a point to sternly correct us everytime we forgot.

:( Me: " Ms, Smith, May I go to the..."

:mad: Teacher: "NO"

:( Class: Ms, Smith, The world is on...

:mad: Teacher: "No, My name..."

:( National Guardsmen: Due to a clear and present danger, Ms. Smith we will have to.....

:mad: Teacher: NO, NO, NO! My name is Dr. Smith!

...And so I decided long ago I would not force anyone to recognize a title by my own arrogance.

Anyway, I apologize to all of you who do plan to crazyglue MD to your name... It seems that my parents have beat you to the punch and bought the entire world's supply.
 
I intend to get "MD" or "DOC" tattooed on my bicep a la the surgery resident on "Scrubs"... anyone in this with me? I know a tattoo parlor in Vallejo, CA that will give us a group discount... :D
 
the blood sweat and tears people go through to become a doctor makes it easy for me to understand why they would want the md tattooed to their name. Me personally, I expect I will want to be called doctor only in the hospital.

You're right about the whole doctor thing making it easy to pick up women. But the only kind of women you get from that will ones not worth the bother. I was on SDN one night reading all you people's crap (hah, j/k I love this place) and I flipped on the tv while i was read, some white noise in the background. Well an episode of blind date comes on and the girl's date is a doctor. She is pretty hot and she comes to his door, and the narrator goes well we don't have a lot to show on this date, 20 minutes after hearing he was a doctor the date ended like this (and it shows them both going into his bedroom and the door closing). Stuff like that really makes me wonder about women sometimes. Fortunately not all are like that, but I'd be willing to bet most women would have acted the same.
 
While we're at it, can we get to the bottom of the license plate thing?

Is MD on your plates optional? If you want them, does it cost extra (like custom plates), or is it a service the DMV provides for licensed physicans?

And if you do have MD on your plates, what does that get you? Can you park in handicap spots? Can you go down a one-way street? Can you drive on the sidewalk?
 
the subject of this thread may have gone a bit away from it's original question, but in terms of being known as an md...

i firmly plan on introducing myself to anyone who'll listen as dr. alice. i doubt i'll sign letters alice, md. but i think dr. is a pretty solid way to be known by patients and non-peers. of course anyone i'm on a first name basis with will call me just alice.

my dad introduces himself as dr. lastname to most people. i think it's weird when doctors go by their first name. there needs to be a bit of respectful distance.
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by Dave:
•
You're right about the whole doctor thing making it easy to pick up women. But the only kind of women you get from that will ones not worth the bother. I was on SDN one night reading all you people's crap (hah, j/k I love this place) and I flipped on the tv while i was read, some white noise in the background. Well an episode of blind date comes on and the girl's date is a doctor. She is pretty hot and she comes to his door, and the narrator goes well we don't have a lot to show on this date, 20 minutes after hearing he was a doctor the date ended like this (and it shows them both going into his bedroom and the door closing). Stuff like that really makes me wonder about women sometimes. Fortunately not all are like that, but I'd be willing to bet most women would have acted the same.•••••Not all women, believe me!!! However, sometimes it can surprise you, I have quite a few friends who probably would have done that <img border="0" title="" alt="[Frown]" src="frown.gif" />
 
Hamster,
In college we called most of our chem professors by their first names, so one time someone accidentally called our theatre teacher by her first name. She was so infuriated that someone called her something other than Dr. Soandso, that she spent half the lecture telling us how hard she worked for her PhD in theatre arts and she demanded she always be addressed as Dr. Soandso. I think it's OK to want to be addressed with the respect one deserves, but I have to wonder about people who make a big deal about it.

BTW, have you guys ever seen that episode of Seinfeld where Elaine is dating a guy who is a conductor of some amateur orchestra and he wants to be called "maestro" all the time? I think of that episode every time I hear a doctor introduce himself as "Doctor" Soandso in a social (not in the hospital, where it's appropriate) setting like a party.
 
Let's not place all the blame on the women...when was the last time one of you guys/doctors went for the "plump, smart-chic" at a bar????? :wink:

As for the MD thing, I have to admit that I will be using it to my advantage. All my life I have been treated like a "bimbo" due to my looks (blonde, voluptous...you get the idea) and it will be nice to say "that's DOCTOR Bimbo,MD to you! In all seriousness, I would probably prefer to be called Dr. Firstname when addressed by patients/strangers, but certainly wouldn't want that label from friends/co-workers.

Oh yeah, add my name to the list of people that will have MD tattooed to their foreheads at the class reunion. I went to my ten-year reunion and a former classmate actually said "why are you here, you didn't even graduate did you??" Now, the truth is that I didn't, but does that mean that I am not allowed to reunite with long-lost friends? I went to that damn school for 4 years and got kicked out because I didn't live at home (my parents had just divorced, and rather than leave my school during senior year I choose to live with my boyfriend's parents). I think I might just have MD tatooed to my butt instead so they can all kiss it...

Oh my, I've been dwelling....

Sorry for the rant.....

I'm not the least bit vengful either..... :wink:
 
i work in a hospital, and i was sending out a memo with about 20 doctors and myself in a list. at first, i wrote it as Drs. A, B, C, D and left myself off. then my boss came around and asked me to make it A, MD, B, MD, C, MD, D, MD, hannacanna, B.A. ummm...no. i am not going to tag myself as holding a BA! i laughed at him, and wrote it Dr. A, Dr. B, Dr. C, Dr. D, hannacanna.

that's like my biggest pet peeve in this hospital; everybody's got to list off every freaking degree they've ever heard of. it gets really ridiculous sometimes, and it's not the MDs that have the long lists--it's usually something like RN, BSN, CNM, MB, PT. i know it took a lot of work, but pick the one that's appropriate for the task at hand!
 
my mom was convinced that driving her car w/md plates (and maybe the fact that its a benz), people would cut her off, etc. She changed the plates and said it actually has made some difference.
 
katie, they're optional and it costs more to have them. at least in nys.
 
I don't think I will have MD beside my name all the time. However, I recently received my contract for my residency. As I was going through the pages of information sheets and forms to fill out, I came upon a page with asking me to confirm my personal info. For the first time I got to see it in writing:

"Whisker Barrel Cortex, M.D." :D

It really made me smile and sent a little bit of a chill down my spine. All of these years of hard work all summed up in these two letters. It was pretty damn cool.

For those of you who have already gotten in to med school congratulations and enjoy the ride that awaits you! For those who have yet to get in, don't lose hope. It took me two tries to get in. Best of luck to all of you.
 
Congratulations, Dr. Cortex!

I don't yet have a doctorate. I have a master (there's no "s" on the end) degree, but I can't get anyone to call me "master."

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Whisker Barrel Cortex:
•I don't think I will have MD beside my name all the time. However, I recently received my contract for my residency. As I was going through the pages of information sheets and forms to fill out, I came upon a page with asking me to confirm my personal info. For the first time I got to see it in writing:

"Whisker Barrel Cortex, M.D." :D

It really made me smile and sent a little bit of a chill down my spine. All of these years of hard work all summed up in these two letters. It was pretty damn cool.

For those of you who have already gotten in to med school congratulations and enjoy the ride that awaits you! For those who have yet to get in, don't lose hope. It took me two tries to get in. Best of luck to all of you.•••••
 
•••quote:•••Originally posted by Kluver Bucy:
•Congratulations, Dr. Cortex!

I don't yet have a doctorate. I have a master (there's no "s" on the end) degree, but I can't get anyone to call me "master."•••••Yeah, I'm always trying to get my friends to call me master but for some reason they won't do it... I guess they're just weird or something.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

Qpworueury
  • Locked
Read this: Your Med School name does matter
2
Replies
63
Views
5K
GoSpursGo
GoSpursGo
X
PI LoR will be late
Replies
5
Views
307
Alejandro
A
thefirerisen
  • Question
Will I be asked to speak in Spanish during interview?
Replies
14
Views
2K
LeaveNoTrace
L
Lawrence Ubah
Will I be invited to an interview without all my transcripts submitted?
Replies
4
Views
217
candbgirl
C
B
will hurt my chances to be in a masters program while applying to med school?
Replies
3
Views
456
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Top