Health News
Pop Quiz ? Is your physician a M.D., or a D.O.? Should it matter to you?
Many people don?t realize that in the United States there are two groups of physicians fully licensed to prescribe medicine and to practice in all specialty areas, including surgery.
In many respects, there is little difference between the two. Both types must graduate from an accredited medical school. Before they can start their careers, newly minted M.D.s and D.Os receive additional, on-the-job graduate medical training through internships and residencies, which typically last three to six years.
But it is the type of training they receive that sets them apart. M.D.s, or medical doctors, learn to treat specific symptoms or illnesses, whereas D.O.s, or doctors of osteopathic medicine, practice a ?whole person? approach to medicine with an emphasis on preventive health care. They are trained to consider the health of the whole person and use their hands to help diagnose and treat their patients.
According to the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), "D.O.s receive extra training in the musculoskeletal system ? the body?s interconnected system of nerves, muscles and bones, providing them with an in-depth understanding of the ways that illness or injury in one part of the body can affect another. With this knowledge, D.O.s incorporate osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) into their patient care, using their hands to diagnose illness and injury and to encourage the body?s natural tendency toward good health."
I bring this up because National Osteopathic Medicine (NOM) Week begins today. NOM Week brings supporters of the osteopathic medical profession together to focus on one common goal ? increasing awareness of osteopathic medicine and osteopathic physicians (D.O.s) in communities across the country.
If you?re in the process of selecting a new primary care physician, the AOA lists several questions to ask yourself before considering an osteopathic physician. Another great resource for Northwest Baltimore residents in selecting a doctor is the Physician Directory of Md.MD For Life magazine, which you can see here.
What do you think? What factors do you consider when selecting a doctor? What is more important - reputation or experience and training?
- Panel Of Physicians At National Conference Discuss Future Of Rural Primary Care, How To Solve Doctor Shortages
More needs to be done to address the shortage of primary-care physicians, a big problem in rural areas and much of Kentucky, according to a panel of physicians at "Rural Health Journalism 2014," Kris Hickman writes for the Association of Health Care...
- Doctor Shortage News: Residencies Are Filling The Pond With Primary Care Doctors, But U.s. And Ky. Need An Ocean Of Them
Despite a critical shortage of primary care in the country, only 25 percent of newly educated doctors go into this field, and even worse for the mostly-rural Kentucky, less than 5 percent go on to practice in rural areas, says a study by researchers at...
- More Residency Placements Will Be Needed As Medical School Enrollments Rise, Perhaps By 30 Percent Through 2016
Aimed at addressing expected physician shortages, enrollment at U.S. medical schools is on target to increase by 30 percent by 2016, the Medical School Enrollment Survey has found. But even if enrollment rises through expansion of medical schools and...
- Will Illinois Have Enough Family Physicians Beyond 2014?
Do we have enough physicians to care for newly insured patients seeking care starting Jan. 1? Some will be covered by Medicaid; some gain coverage through the insurance marketplace; and others turning 65 join the ranks of Medicare. The Illinois Academy...
- Intimacy After Menopause
It's no secret that "The Change" means change for you, your body and your partner. But life doesn't end after menopause - in fact, the best is yet to come! Dee-Dee Shiller, D.O., board-certified gynecologist and director of the new Women's...
Health News
M.D. or D.O. - What type of doctor is best for you?
Pop Quiz ? Is your physician a M.D., or a D.O.? Should it matter to you?
Many people don?t realize that in the United States there are two groups of physicians fully licensed to prescribe medicine and to practice in all specialty areas, including surgery.
In many respects, there is little difference between the two. Both types must graduate from an accredited medical school. Before they can start their careers, newly minted M.D.s and D.Os receive additional, on-the-job graduate medical training through internships and residencies, which typically last three to six years.
But it is the type of training they receive that sets them apart. M.D.s, or medical doctors, learn to treat specific symptoms or illnesses, whereas D.O.s, or doctors of osteopathic medicine, practice a ?whole person? approach to medicine with an emphasis on preventive health care. They are trained to consider the health of the whole person and use their hands to help diagnose and treat their patients.
According to the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), "D.O.s receive extra training in the musculoskeletal system ? the body?s interconnected system of nerves, muscles and bones, providing them with an in-depth understanding of the ways that illness or injury in one part of the body can affect another. With this knowledge, D.O.s incorporate osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) into their patient care, using their hands to diagnose illness and injury and to encourage the body?s natural tendency toward good health."
I bring this up because National Osteopathic Medicine (NOM) Week begins today. NOM Week brings supporters of the osteopathic medical profession together to focus on one common goal ? increasing awareness of osteopathic medicine and osteopathic physicians (D.O.s) in communities across the country.
If you?re in the process of selecting a new primary care physician, the AOA lists several questions to ask yourself before considering an osteopathic physician. Another great resource for Northwest Baltimore residents in selecting a doctor is the Physician Directory of Md.MD For Life magazine, which you can see here.
What do you think? What factors do you consider when selecting a doctor? What is more important - reputation or experience and training?
- Panel Of Physicians At National Conference Discuss Future Of Rural Primary Care, How To Solve Doctor Shortages
More needs to be done to address the shortage of primary-care physicians, a big problem in rural areas and much of Kentucky, according to a panel of physicians at "Rural Health Journalism 2014," Kris Hickman writes for the Association of Health Care...
- Doctor Shortage News: Residencies Are Filling The Pond With Primary Care Doctors, But U.s. And Ky. Need An Ocean Of Them
Despite a critical shortage of primary care in the country, only 25 percent of newly educated doctors go into this field, and even worse for the mostly-rural Kentucky, less than 5 percent go on to practice in rural areas, says a study by researchers at...
- More Residency Placements Will Be Needed As Medical School Enrollments Rise, Perhaps By 30 Percent Through 2016
Aimed at addressing expected physician shortages, enrollment at U.S. medical schools is on target to increase by 30 percent by 2016, the Medical School Enrollment Survey has found. But even if enrollment rises through expansion of medical schools and...
- Will Illinois Have Enough Family Physicians Beyond 2014?
Do we have enough physicians to care for newly insured patients seeking care starting Jan. 1? Some will be covered by Medicaid; some gain coverage through the insurance marketplace; and others turning 65 join the ranks of Medicare. The Illinois Academy...
- Intimacy After Menopause
It's no secret that "The Change" means change for you, your body and your partner. But life doesn't end after menopause - in fact, the best is yet to come! Dee-Dee Shiller, D.O., board-certified gynecologist and director of the new Women's...