Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

It’s time to rethink what it means to be a DO

Seger Morris, DO, MBA
Education
May 30, 2019
Share
Tweet
Share

The future of our profession lies in our ability to come together with a unified voice. We must also recognize that the practice of osteopathic medicine, and the training of osteopathic physicians, has evolved significantly since A.T. Still, MD, DO, created osteopathy.

The AOA recognized this when its Board of Trustees announced that the AOA will start providing two pathways for board certification. DOs will be able to choose to become board certified:

  1. In the osteopathic practice of their specialty, or:
  2. In their specialty only by taking an initial certification exam without osteopathic content.

A different generation

We are a different generation of DOs. The vast majority of graduating DOs entered osteopathic medical school far more interested in earning the “Dr.” in front of their name than the “DO” after it, and almost 75% of applicants to DO schools even applied to MD schools the same year or the year before.

Following graduation from DO school, the majority of DOs enter residencies without osteopathic recognition, obtain board certification through ABMS rather than the AOA, and rarely (if ever) use osteopathic manipulative treatment in their daily practice of medicine.

This isn’t to say we aren’t a different breed of physicians than our allopathic colleagues. We still pride ourselves on less objective measurements of “The DO Difference” like empathy, bedside manner, communication skills and our holistic approach to healing the patient.

However, we no longer have a patent on this approach to patient care. MD schools and ACGME standards are now emphasizing these characteristics more. While some may choose to further validate these skills—along with OMT—by choosing board certification in the osteopathic practice of their specialty, this “DO Difference” is instilled in us mostly as we earn our Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree. Once a DO, always a DO.

I am a third-generation DO from a family with more than 15 osteopathic physicians. I completed an AOA residency and am board certified by the American Osteopathic Board of Internal Medicine. I seek OMT above all else as treatment for my personal chronic musculoskeletal conditions.

The realities of modern osteopathic medicine

I’m proud to adhere to osteopathic principles and practice (OPP) as a physician, but I do not use OMT in my daily practice as a hospitalist. It simply was not emphasized in my training program. I consider myself to be an “osteopathic physician who is board certified in internal medicine” as opposed to a “physician board certified in osteopathic internal medicine.” Osteopathic medicine is integral to how I practice, but I don’t feel the need to validate that beyond my DO degree. On the other hand, those who wish to do so will have the option to take an exam that’s even stronger than ever before.

Simply put, the two pathways for AOA board certification will accommodate the realities of modern osteopathic medicine by more accurately validating how physicians practice.

Additionally, these two pathways will allow the AOA to further advance its mission and vision by offering board certification services to physicians who don’t hold the DO degree. MDs across the country are engaged with osteopathic medicine in clinical practice and in training. Those enrolled in ACGME training programs with osteopathic recognition deserve the opportunity to validate their learned skills in OPP and OMT, and the AOA is right to open osteopathic board certification to these individuals.

Providing a pathway to specialty certification that does not validate osteopathic knowledge or skills also provides physicians, both DO and MD, who are seeking a more focused specialty certification (either by choice or by virtue of their training) with a nationally recognized alternative to ABMS. This is a tremendous opportunity for the AOA to expose an entirely new demographic to the culture, philosophy and practice of osteopathic medicine.

ADVERTISEMENT

Join me in this exciting time of change by supporting the two pathways for AOA board certification with a unified voice.

Seger Morris is chair, American Osteopathic Association’s Bureau of Emerging Leaders and the New Physician in Practice member, AOA Board of Trustees. This article originally appeared in The DO.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

The power of an individual's story reminds physicians why they got into medicine

May 30, 2019 Kevin 1
…
Next

A physician's sudden, disastrous day. And its tragic consequences.

May 30, 2019 Kevin 1
…

Tagged as: Medical school, Practice Management

Post navigation

< Previous Post
The power of an individual's story reminds physicians why they got into medicine
Next Post >
A physician's sudden, disastrous day. And its tragic consequences.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

  • Doctors: It’s time to unionize

    Thomas D. Guastavino, MD
  • It’s time to stop being skeptical of hospital chaplains

    Ilaria Simeone
  • It’s time to change how we regulate methadone

    Paul Joudrey, MD, MPH
  • Finding happiness in the time of COVID

    Anonymous
  • It’s time to focus medical education on training the whole person

    Tracy Asamoah, MD
  • More than three hours late, but somehow still on time

    Tasia Isbell, MD, MPH

More in Education

  • Why medical schools must ditch lectures and embrace active learning

    Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA
  • Why helping people means more than getting an MD

    Vaishali Jha
  • Residency match tips: Building mentorship, research, and community

    Simran Kaur, MD and Eva Shelton, MD
  • How I learned to stop worrying and love AI

    Rajeev Dutta
  • Why medical student debt is killing primary care in America

    Alexander Camp
  • Why the pre-med path is pushing future doctors to the brink

    Jordan Williamson, MEd
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 2 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

It’s time to rethink what it means to be a DO
2 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...