Difference between DO and MD
Medical courses are said to be among the toughest courses offered in school today. It is also deemed as something that should not be taken lightly because what the professionals are dealing with here is human life where it requires no room for errors, unlike business majors and engineers which can make mistakes and do it all over again. There are a lot of types of doctors as well as their fields of expertise. One of the most popular and most chosen professions of doctors is to become a physician, particularly a DO or an MD degree. What are the differences and similarities of these two lines of work since they both hold a degree in medicine? Read below to find out.
Definition
The abbreviation DO is a physician’s doctoral degree which stands for Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine in the United States. A doctor who has had a doctoral degree of this field is called an osteopathic physician. Osteopathic physicians undergo the same training and study as that of the MD (Doctor of Medicine). What differentiates the two is with the DO degree, they study osteopathic manipulative medicine methods. MD on the other hand stands for Doctor of Medicine, which came from the Latin word Medicinæ Doctor which means “Teacher of Medicine”. Medical schools are the ones responsible for producing these professionals, as well as the doctoral degree offered to physicians.
Practices
An osteopathic physician or a DO practices general medicine with an additional expertise on osteopathic medicine. These people are experts in curing or helping people battle the most common effects of aging and poor calcium intake – osteoporosis. The MD or the Doctor of Medicine on the other hand is focused on general medicine which means it encompasses everything which is not related to surgery. For most doctors, this degree is their stepping stone for a higher expertise because the first years of study or training of every medicinal course has already taken the study up.
Training and Exams
In America, the MD and the DO are exclusive degrees which permit the licensure to become medical physicians. Both the DO and the MD have the same training and these two courses require at least four years of study and training with regards to the clinical and basic sciences. These two courses also require the professional to pass a licensure exam in order for them to become public practitioners. With the DO, they must pass an examination called COMLEX and the MD must be a passer of USMLE. When it comes to training, a DO trains where an MD trains. The highlight of being a DO against an MD is that an additional expertise and training is offered to you called the Osteopathic Manual Manipulation.
Summary
- A DO is called an osteopathic doctor, while an MD is basically known as a general medicine doctor.
- A DO trains where the MD trains and completes the same number of years to finish the degree itself.
- A DO is better because it they have additional expertise other than the general studies ones.
