New primary care physician - would I regret signing up with a DO?

September 5, 2024 2:42 PM

I'm considering switching to a new primary care physician who is a DO, rather than an MD, but is highly recommended as being responsive, attentive, knowledgeable, etc. Should I skip her? Help me understand "DO" enough to know if I would find it incompatible.

I've only had MDs before. The "MD vs. DO" articles all use words I don't understand, like "holistic approach", "treating the whole patient", and OMT (osteopathic manipulative treatment). Whereas they describe an MD as more traditional medicine, prescribing medicine to treat illness. But what's the practical result? I'm 50s, and have some mild chronic-ish conditions but no big major illness.

posted by bluesky78987 to Health & Fitness (23 answers total)

Best answer: DOs are trained the same as MDs and have the same powers and privileges. Their education focuses a bit more on 'holistic' medicine and some 'manipulation' but in my experience, they practice the same. If you like the individual, they're great. Really no difference. I've been seen by both since my GP practice has both MDs and DOs in the office.
posted by mmf at 2:54 PM on September 5 [3 favorites]

Best answer: Who are the recommendations coming from? People you know and respect? It's my understanding that many DOs are not that dissimilar from MDs. You might want different things, but what I want most in a primary care doc is a good rapport, someone I can talk to, trust, and who listens to me -- and who knows their stuff, of course. But my feeling is that anything serious is in the realm of specialists, so a primary care doc is someone I need on my side. It seems worth checking this person out to see what you think.
posted by gigondas at 3:00 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I have seen no appreciable difference between lab tests/medications ordered by MDs vs. the DO in the office where I work.
posted by Night_owl at 3:01 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]

Best answer: My best DO understanding is 20 years old and based on originally being on a premed path early in college and my resident head being a newly minted DO. DOs are real doctors, and (*anecdotally*) (*most of the time*) is a path students take when their scores are a little lower than you'd like them to be for med school. Not a lot lower, just it's much less attractive to be a DO than an MD, so there's less competition to get in.

Residency programs are generally identical. My DO RH was in pedes residency at the University of Chicago, which is obviously a perfectly fine hospital to train in.

The place where it gets woo is that DOs have to do additional training in osteopathy, which is nonsense. Like any profession, some folks will be more into the woo elements than others. If you visit and get even a hint of chiropractic vibes from this doc, you should peace out post haste.
posted by phunniemee at 3:07 PM on September 5 [6 favorites]

Best answer: My primary care provider was a DO and she was amazing.
posted by tafetta, darling! at 3:52 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]

Best answer: My experience with DOs has always been: longer, better appointments and less difficulty scheduling. I always choose the DO when I have to pick a new doctor via Kaiser.
posted by samthemander at 4:06 PM on September 5

Best answer: I think DOs are fine if you have the time for woo conversations, but I’ll stick with my MD.
posted by Ideefixe at 4:10 PM on September 5

Best answer: I have seen DOs and had great experiences. I have no tolerance at all for woo conversations and have never had one foisted on me by any DO I have seen.
posted by Ausamor at 4:17 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]

Best answer: There is a large range of woo in osteopathy. In Ontario, an Osteopathic Manual Practitioner is analogous to a physiotherapist with a PhD, performing soft tissue techniques that work very effectively. Several women dancer friends have had much longer careers than they otherwise might have, with the help of osteopathic treatment.

I believe DOs as primary care physicians only exist in the USA.
posted by sixswitch at 4:46 PM on September 5

Best answer: If you wish chiropractic “medicine” was a real thing, go for a DO. They’ve got all the same training as an MD as well as some demonstrated inclination towards the small bits of chiro that actually make sense.

If the very idea of dealing with someone that thinks there might something to chiro gives you the instinctive heeby-jeebies, get yourself an MD.
posted by not just everyday big moggies at 4:49 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]

Best answer: My current primary care provider is a DO in a practice of mostly MDs and I haven’t noticed any lacking. He is one of my most attentive and knowledgeable physicians I recall having treated me.

My cousin and his wife are MDs; when Hasan Minhaj’s bit about DOs being reject got famous I asked them. They said it’s a joke and DOs are basically equivalent.
posted by DJWeezy at 5:00 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]

Best answer: One of the best and most heavily scheduled doctors in a local ortho practice is a DO. He chose that option purely because the educational path was less costly, he had frugal parents (this was 40 years ago) and he didn't want the enormous debt an MD education cost. It's the same licence to practice! If the doctor has a great reputation I'd give him a chance!
posted by citygirl at 5:37 PM on September 5

Best answer: My new doc is a DO. I used to mock DO's, but after having this guy treat my daughter at an urgent care place, he totally impressed me and I switched to seeing him as my primary care doctor.

No more DO jokes from me!
posted by wenestvedt at 6:12 PM on September 5

Best answer: My brother is a DO. DO and MD nowadays are considered to be equal as they have very similar curriculums, EXCEPT DO gets additional manual manipulation training (called OMM), and was supposed to think more "holistically". Practically speaking, there should be no difference at all.
posted by kschang at 6:21 PM on September 5

Best answer: I have never had a woo conversation with a DO, I've never actually noticed anything different (medically speaking) in seeing a DO vs an MD as my primary care physician. The DO was just as fine with prescribing me meds for something I've definitely seen women have trouble getting meds for from all types of doctors (usually told to eat better or that it's "just hormonal")

A DO is who finally diagnosed my year long headache by actually touching me vs just asking questions so I see that as a pretty big plus.

I dated a DO for a couple months too and those were definitely the best neck rubs I'd ever had.
posted by magnetsphere at 7:04 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]

Best answer: My PCP is a DO. Been with him for a decade. He’s great, respectful, listens to me, all the good stuff. I have an extremely low tolerance for woo, and have never felt uncomfortable with him.
posted by phonebia at 7:29 PM on September 5

Best answer: I've had both, I've never noticed the difference.
posted by Toddles at 7:56 PM on September 5

Best answer: When I was looking for a new primary care person I found this Sawbones podcast episode about osteopathic medicine reassuring in considering DOs as well as MDs (of course, a lot depends on the specific person). (Sawbones is a comedic podcast about medical history ; co-host Sydnee is an MD.)
posted by adventitious at 8:08 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Assuming you are in the U.S. You will be fine. In the U.K., DOs are alternative quacks.
posted by charlesminus at 9:21 PM on September 5

Best answer: Yeah, I was going to say - the requirements for being a D.O. and even the understanding of what osteopathy is are very different in different countries. All the comments here are (I assume) about osteopathy in the US.
posted by trig at 1:00 AM on September 6

Best answer: In my experience, DOs can do everything MDs can do plus DOs can also do spinal manipulation/adjustments.

If you tend have a lot of neck and back pain, get a lot of pinched nerves, etc. then it's nice to have someone to can simply yank everything back into place immediately as needed instead of prescribing weeks of physical therapy and muscle relaxers.

Unlike chiropractors, they don't believe that these adjustments will cure everything from acne to diabetes, just issues caused by the vertebrae physically pressing on something they shouldn't.
posted by Jacqueline at 5:40 AM on September 6

Best answer: I'm in the US and switched from an MD to a DO several years ago. The DO I have as my PCP now is probably the best primary care doctor I've ever had in terms of listening to me, answering questions thoroughly, doing research when she doesn't know something, and not deciding "just lose weight" is the answer to everything." She doesn't have a woo-y bone in her body as far as I can tell. She's a data point of one but I'm thrilled with her.
posted by Stacey at 5:50 AM on September 6

Response by poster: Well that's pretty clear! Going to give the lovely DO a try. Thanks everybody!
posted by bluesky78987 at 8:59 AM on September 6 [1 favorite]