I also add to the thanks for the greater explanation of Osteopathy. However, this mistake had already been perpetuated to a MSNBC report.
I know the differences because I am, in fact, a D.O. (and also a Ph.D.) student at Michigan State University, the U.S. News and World Report's 5th Highest Ranking Primary Medical School in the country (which is ranked among all M.D. (allopathic) and D.O. (osteopathic) schools in the country).
I also know that what a D.O. student is required to learn and be board certified is the same if not more than a M.D. Case in point, I am less than a week away from taking my USMLE Step 1 (the same 8hr board exam all M.D. students in this country must take and pass). I say, often learn the same or MORE, as I also am taking the COMLEX board exam in two weeks (which is another 8hr board exam required by the National Board of Osteopathic examiners). So for the past 4 weeks, for 12-13 hrs/day I have been sitting and studying, sitting some more, and studying. To read this report made me frustrated and upset enough to take myself away from studying and write this.
My third point in questioning whether a D.O. is a doctor relates to Dr. Richard Jadick, the brave military physician who saved dozens of lives during the battle for Fallujah. He was the featured in the March 20th, 2007 Newsweek cover article (which also was coincidentally mis-titled "Hero M.D." by a journalist who also failed to understand the difference and thought a D.O. was an M.D. with more training (which is false technically, but seems correct in some ways). I invite you to visit the MSNBC website with the story: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11787394/site/newsweek/
Lastly, I think it's important to realize that there is the same percentage of bad doctors with M.D. as there are with a D.O. behind their name. Human nature is by far the greatest component of what type of doctor you are going to be. If someone doesn't care about their patients, then they will be a crummy doctor no matter how much training, what school they went to, or where and what you specialty of medicine they are practicing. I have no doubts that the doctor in this case may have made mistakes, may have padded his resume, but this is nothing new in professional society. I can think of many reports of academics, CEOs and the like who were found to have huge errors and euphemisms on their resumes and they most certainly were not all D.O.s
Sincerely,
Eric Schauberger
D.O. Students,
Michigan State University COM
I also add to the thanks for the greater explanation of Osteopathy. However, this mistake had already been perpetuated to a MSNBC report.
I know the differences because I am, in fact, a D.O. (and also a Ph.D.) student at Michigan State University, the U.S. News and World Report's 5th Highest Ranking Primary Medical School in the country (which is ranked among all M.D. (allopathic) and D.O. (osteopathic) schools in the country).
I also know that what a D.O. student is required to learn and be board certified is the same if not more than a M.D. Case in point, I am less than a week away from taking my USMLE Step 1 (the same 8hr board exam all M.D. students in this country must take and pass). I say, often learn the same or MORE, as I also am taking the COMLEX board exam in two weeks (which is another 8hr board exam required by the National Board of Osteopathic examiners). So for the past 4 weeks, for 12-13 hrs/day I have been sitting and studying, sitting some more, and studying. To read this report made me frustrated and upset enough to take myself away from studying and write this.
My third point in questioning whether a D.O. is a doctor relates to Dr. Richard Jadick, the brave military physician who saved dozens of lives during the battle for Fallujah. He was the featured in the March 20th, 2007 Newsweek cover article (which also was coincidentally mis-titled "Hero M.D." by a journalist who also failed to understand the difference and thought a D.O. was an M.D. with more training (which is false technically, but seems correct in some ways). I invite you to visit the MSNBC website with the story: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11787394/site/newsweek/
Lastly, I think it's important to realize that there is the same percentage of bad doctors with M.D. as there are with a D.O. behind their name. Human nature is by far the greatest component of what type of doctor you are going to be. If someone doesn't care about their patients, then they will be a crummy doctor no matter how much training, what school they went to, or where and what you specialty of medicine they are practicing. I have no doubts that the doctor in this case may have made mistakes, may have padded his resume, but this is nothing new in professional society. I can think of many reports of academics, CEOs and the like who were found to have huge errors and euphemisms on their resumes and they most certainly were not all D.O.s
Sincerely,
Eric Schauberger
D.O. Students,
Michigan State University COM