DO vs MD...

... I should probably know this!

JJ stayed home sick from Church this morning.  The sick made its way from M-girl to me and hopefully has claimed its last victim.  While in the nursery picking up M, I was chatting with a gal and the topic of JJ wanting baby to come after his final on Monday came up.  We started talking about med school and she, of course, assumed he was at KU-Med.  I explained that he was at KCUMB and thus the DO vs MD discussion came up.  It always does.  I should be prepared for it.  I was not.  She was all excited to be informed because they have started seeing a DO pediatrician that they LOVE but have always wondered what the DO meant.  She asked, sooooo, do they do herbal stuff?  When I relayed the conversation back to JJ and at this point was sharing how I said that I didn't think so, his eyes about popped out of his head and he told me he couldn't talk to me right then.

A few minutes later, after he had apparently calmed down (I AM exaggerating a bit - and for those of  you that know JJ know that his high emotional response would be about my average every day reaction...), he showed me a great website that explains the DO vs. MD thing and now - bring it on - I can confidently say, NO, it does NOT mean they do herbal stuff!  Phew!  Glad we got that cleared up!  I love my future DO!

Here are the notes for you:

DO's and MD's are alike in many ways:

• Applicants to both DO. and M.D. colleges typically have a four-year undergraduate degree with an emphasis on science courses.
  
• Both DO's and MD's complete four years of basic medical education.
  
• After medical school, both DO's and MD's can choose to practice in a specialty area of medicine such as psychiatry, surgery, or obstetrics.  They both complete a residency program, which takes typically two to six years of additional training.
  
• Both DO's and MD's must pass comparable state licensing examinations.
  
• DO's and MD's both practice in fully accredited and licensed hospitals and medical centers.
  
• DO's comprise a separate, yet equal branch of American medical care. Together DO's and MD's enhance the state of health care available in America.
  
• However, it's the ways that DO's and MD's are different that can bring an extra dimension to your family's health care.

DO's bring something extra to medicine:

• Osteopathic schools emphasize training students to be primary care physicians.
• DO's practice a "whole person" approach to medicine. Instead of just treating specific symptoms or illnesses, they regard your body as an integrated whole.
• Osteopathic physicians focus on preventive healthcare.
• DO's receive extra training in the musculoskeletal system - your body's interconnected system of nerves, muscles and bones that make up two-thirds of its body mass. This training provides osteopathic physicians with a better understanding of the ways that an injury or illness in one part of your body can affect another. It gives DO's a therapeutic and diagnostic advantage over those who do not receive additional specialized training.
• Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is incorporated in the training and practice of osteopathic physicians. OMT allows physicians to use their hands to diagnose injury and illness and to encourage your body's natural tendency toward good health. By combining all other medical procedures with OMT, DO's offer their patients the most comprehensive care available in medicine today.

See - you can learn something new every day!