Do's

[ruddabega]

I am going into medicine and hope to become a DO (an osteopathic doctor, instead of an allopathic doctor like MD's are.) Does any one have a DO doctor? If so, are they any better then regular docs?

[nettiebeads]

I am going into medicine and hope to become a DO (an osteopathic doctor, instead of an allopathic doctor like MD's are.) Does any one have a DO doctor? If so, are they any better then regular docs?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes, my gp is a DO. And he is very understanding about the effects of celiac. I just had my yearly with him and talked about celiac disease, something I rarely do with my drs. (I had had an internist tell me I could probably eat wheat again.) But then again, it was my first gp, an MD, who diagnosed the celiac disease after I had had diarrhea for six weeks. So in that way, I haven't been the usual celiac disease story of years of misdiagnosis and suspected hypochondria. But I digress. When I told him that I had joined this forum, he was very supportive because he knew that there wasn't much out there for him to tell me. It is almost an orphan disease in that there isn't a pill or anything to help us. Just diet. Oh, and he doesn't really think that Stanford can come up with whatever they're working on (some kind of binder or something to trick the body into not attacking the gluten protein). He is up on how it can affect the body if untreated, so he's ordered a full battery of blood work (my first ever) just to see if I'm having malabsorption issues.

So in answer to your question, I think it depends on what kind of person one is before he or she goes to school.

[CeliacMe]

It depends on the doctor! I had a DO for a few years and she treated me like a hypochondriac and was a complete idiot. I just got a new DO and she ran the right bloodwork on the first visit. The key to being a good doctor is knowing your stuff, listening to the patient and knowing that its not beneath you to learn and research beyond your medical school training. Many doctors seem to vomit out the same crapola their hundred year old do-nothing professor told them 20 years ago, no matter how archaic it sounds. I am sure you will be a good doctor, especially if you know what the average Celiac goes though (suspected hypochondria, misdiagnosis, being shuffeled around, seeming to "slip between the cracks" EVERYTIME).

I am going into medicine and hope to become a DO (an osteopathic doctor, instead of an allopathic doctor like MD's are.) Does any one have a DO doctor? If so, are they any better then regular docs?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Jnkmnky]

Our DO is a nice enough guy, but doesn't know much about celiac. He isn't too egotistical to listen, though, which is a refreshing attitude in a dr.

[debbiewil]

The couple of DO's I've been to haven't been more knowledgeable, but they have been a lot more willing to listen, more open, etc. Definately among the better doctors I've seen. I'd definately have a DO as my GP if there was one in my town.

Debbie