Cool, I am glad she got her liscence. It seems like the judge was really down on the liscencing board about it.

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He met a recent DO grad who couldn't stop talking about how great his experience was at a DO school. He claimed that most DO schools are more laid back than MD and you don't have as many cutthroat classmates. He also crushed the USMLE and COMLEX and is now a neuro surgeon. So once he LEARNED that he could go into any field without discrimination as a DO I think it came down to the school that could provide the most enjoyable medical school experience and he chose DO. Of course there are still residency directors out there ignorant to DOs, but they are a small minority. I don't think he cared if he went DO or MD. From what I understand there is NO difference. The issues with states like PA and elsewhere (I think only 4 other states), are based on politics and I see a definite change in the near future.

Wow, this is comical! I love how you decided what the "issue" was. All that was said was "There are very few states where the DO is even considered different than an MD." And your response was " just 50 of them." If that isn't an ignorant statement, I don't know what is. Unfortunately, you are not alone in your preconceived ideas of DO medical doctors. I think there are many people who want those two letters, M.D. behind their name, that they eliminate the option of attending a DO school even though their medical training experience could be better than other options. And to say that someone made a bad choice for choosing a DO school over USMD is just ridiculous..... Both schools are located in the good 'ol USA with USA hospitals and both schools give you the option of doing an allopathic residency. I don't see how going to one over the other as a bad choice. There are many people like my friend who apply to DO and MD schools regardless of each school's different "philosophy". Most who apply to DO and MD do it to have more options and perhaps use their DO schools as a backup.

The funny thing is that I recently learned that you can pay 5-10K to some foreign schools after you graduate from a DO school and they will award you an M.D. degree. That way you don't have to take an extra 5 minutes to explain to your patients the difference between DO and MD because basically there isn't any and it would probably just confuse them and they don't care either way. It's like DDS and DMD.

So Rokshana, what say you? Did you report me? Did I hurt your feelings? Just relax, I never meant to insult you. I think you're a stud (an uninformed stud) for serving the people of Mexico, they are wonderful!

DO is just a philosophical choice. I think it is great to consider manipulation and whole person approach to medicine. The straight allopathic approach is restrictive, especially in primary care situations.

In today's Osteopathic schools the curriculum covers all of the same topics in the same depth as the allopathic schools plus mainpulation and whole patient view.

They actually get a more well-rounded education.

If that is your reason for going to DO school than more power to ya.

They have come a long way since I was an undergrad, but there is still a little stigma.


My reasons lead me to UAG so I could continue to work in underserved areas.

Sadly, the only reason to go to the carribean is that you couldn't get into a US allopathic or DO school. Unless someone has a good reason.

Please, enlighten me. What is the good reason to go to the carribean over a US medical school?

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There is no snow on the islands. That would be good enough reason for me

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"You do not truly understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother." Albert Einstein

#1 reason (IMO) is to get the oh so special letters M.D. Whether or not that is a good reason, depends on the person I guess.

obviously you are not from the US, so the differences may not be apparent to you...you probably aren't even in med school so again you have no idea what is ahead for you...and in the grand scheme of things, after residency there isn't much of a difference (esp if you are a community physician)...a good doctor is a good doctor, but GETTING to that point, there are hurdles in your way and hoops to be jumped if you are anything but a USMD...from getting 4th year electives to getting licensed in a state...and we as IMG have more in common with DOs than DOs do with USMDs (even the DO students I have rotated with have said so).

I'm sorry if you don't quite get this or are just too idealistic to understand the concept...4 years of med school and an ERAS season will open your eyes soon enough....

as as for reporting, if you edit your posts, there will be no reason to do so, but flaming and personal insults are against the TOS that you signed when you signed up on vmd...it is up to the individual to abide by the rules of the forum...your a noob, so i gave you fair warning, hoever if you refused to edit, then i have no choice but to report the post.

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GI Elective [x]....Wards []
Wards [x] ............Night Float []
MICU [x thank GOD!] ...........Wards []
Wards [] ............CCU []
Elective!![]......... PGY 1 1/2 []
VACATION!!!! [] .Move Complete[]

oh my god! this is ridiculous, report this, report that, change this, change that, DO vs MD vs caribbean.....is there anything better to do?

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From one of the speakers during Orientation, "There is nothing wrong with Mexico; it is JUST different"

This is what I would like to do to the "burros" of Megacable....

Why do all of your comments, directed at me or anyone in this message string always end up in a pissing match? You should consider going on another psych rotation and find an attending to listen to your childhood memories. I think you have some self esteem issues that need to be addressed.

I personally know an UAG alum, who is a very well respected physician. I personally know an ophthalmologist DO, anesthesiologist DO, Emergency MD, and Family physician DO. I also know medical students at UAG, SGU, St. Martins and a handful of friends in US allopathic/osteopathic med schools. I have had lengthy conversations with many of them. Don't think for one minute that I am any less informed than you regardless of what level of education I am at. As far as you know I could be starting residency in July, or maybe I'm still in high school.

Bottom line is that your comments come across as uninformed. You shouldn't make statements that you can't back up. The hoops that DOs have to jump through are the same as USMDs. They are called good grades, good board scores, good LORs, research, etc. Hopefully when you start practicing you will see the big picture.

BTW, last year one of the top 5 scores from the USMLE came from a DO student. He likely won't be jumping through many hoops, despite what you think his disadvantages are for having a DO degree. But hey, you are probably not from the US, so you don't understand how things are done over here.

I applied to DO schools for 2008 entering class and also went to the SGU open house in NYC. I was very unimpressed with the open house, the woman who spoke for 2 hours was such a used car salesman, then during the Q and A session she seemed to get beligerent and angry at every question addressed to her by the audience. She looked like Dan Henderson, former Pride fighting middle weight *****, prob could beat him also.

The fact is, DO vs MD next to your name means less then US doc vs IMG, as a DO or USMD you are part of the system, as an IMG u are not, and considering DR Pan's distain for IMG"S plus the SUPER INCREASE IN THEIR numbers-- Ross 400 plus times 3 semesters a year, SGU is over 500 if u include their Jan class, ST Mathews is also exploding with students, AUA, over 300 students and they are only 4 years old, plus so many new Carrb schools, almost every island has one.. AUC and SABA are also in the mix

I had a get together tonight at my house and two my guests were from ROss and they were complaining about this issue, basically, more and more IMG's are not matching bc of the increase carrb #'s plus the DO crunch, both wish they had gone DO. Every residency dir they had asked at Wycoff and St Johns in queens has said DO get second pick in the allo match plus 1st in the DO osteo residency which are pretty much exclusive to DO's