D.O. != Alternative Medicine

As opposed to medical doctors in America who are MDs, I am a doctor of osteopathy.  The details of the differences are beyond the scope of this post (see What is a DO?), but suffice it to say that historically there were big differences between the two degrees.  In modern medicine, however, the two degrees are quite similar in terms of how the physicians practice medicine.  The biggest difference is that DOs get additional training in musculoskeletal manipulation, allowing us to perform treatments similar to chiropractors.

DOs are somewhat regional and I live and work in a heavy MD state.  Since I've been out of med school I've been surprised at the number of people who come to see me because I am a DO.  People actually seek us out specifically because of our degree.  On the surface this sounds great but unfortunately I cringe a little bit every time someone tells me that they found me because they were looking for a DO.  The reason why is because every time someone tells me this they are looking for some alternative to the treatments they've been told to do for their ailment.  Whether it is herbs, or supplements, or acupuncture, or diet changes, or whatever, they want guidance to do something that is not traditional medicine.  What is confusing to me is that when I went to medical school we didn't learn any of that stuff.  Our boards didn't cover any of that stuff.  We learned modern medicine.  So I don't completely understand why some people associate DOs with alternative medicine other than that we learned how to do skeletal manipulation.  It has to be a historical reason why people associate us with that kind of thing.  A reason that existed before I became a DO.  Case in point, I saw a young woman recently who came to me looking for an alternative treatment for her low thyroid other than taking a thyroid replacement pill (spoiler: there isn't one).  I even go as far as saying that I practice modern, evidence-based medicine on my website bio because I don't want to waste people's time or money and they still come looking for something different.  Almost all visits end the same way.  I feel like the patient is disappointed in my lack of advice, I feel disappointed that I can't satisfy their wants, and I frequently never see the person again.

On a completely different note, I did something today that I've been wanting to do for a long time.  I joined the DQ Blizzard of the Month club!  The Blizzard is one of my all time favorite snacks.  The Blizzard of the month club gets you occasional BOGO free coupons among other things.  Time to chow down on my favorite, the Oreo Blizzard!