What Does an Osteopath Do?

This discipline blends a ‘whole person’ approach and high-tech care

Teamwork

Stephen Miller, D.O., and Julie Dostal, M.D., co-lead Lehigh Valley Hospital’s family medicine residency program. They work side-by-side training young D.O.s and M.D.s to become family medicine physicians.

Shannon Kearney, D.O., allergist

“Looking at the entire person is exceptionally important in my specialty, because I focus on the quality of patients’ lives and what makes their allergies worse, not just the medical aspects. By asking questions about their homes, pets, families and habits, I really get to know them—and that’s the best part of medicine.”

David Meir-Levi, D.O., vascular and thoracic surgeon

“For a specialist like me, what remains from osteopathic training is mostly that the whole body works together as a system. It’s a holistic approach that shows up in how we approach patients, how we talk to them, the questions we ask.”

Joshua Krassen, D.O., physiatrist (physical medicine and rehabilitation)

“I find osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) a good adjunct to conservative treatment of neck and low back pain for patients trying to avoid surgery. I treat the immediate symptom, but also take a more holistic approach, looking at things like the biomechanics of how the patient moves and leg-length discrepancies.”

D.O. or M.D? If you’re like most people, you probably don’t think much about the initials behind your doctor’s name. In fact, you may not even notice them.

That’s because doctors of osteopathic medicine (D.O.s) and medical doctors (M.D.s) are much more alike than they’re different. “Many in the healing arts call themselves ‘doctor,’ including dentists, podiatrists and optometrists,” says emergency-medicine physician Alex Rosenau, D.O., of Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network. “But only D.O.s and M.D.s are licensed to address the needs of the entire patient, using the full range of medicine including prescribing drugs and performing surgery.”

These days, D.O.s and M.D.s work side-by-side in physician practices, hospitals and residency programs, covering all medical specialties from cardiology to psychiatry. They get similar training —four years of undergraduate education emphasizing science; four years of comparable medical education (D.O.s attend osteopathic medical schools and M.D.s attend allopathic medical schools); and a residency lasting two to six years, depending on the specialty. Each must pass a licensing exam.

The differences that do exist relate to the historical roots of these two branches of medicine.

Osteopathic medicine was founded in 1874 by Andrew Taylor Still, M.D., as a “whole person” approach to patient care. Still believed that the musculoskeletal system (the network of nerves, muscles and bones) was key to jump-starting the body’s natural healing abilities. He developed a healing-touch method called osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) to correct musculoskeletal problems, diagnose illness, ease pain and promote healing. By contrast, M.D.s focused more on specific diseases and symptoms, using medications and surgery to treat them.

Some of these differences remain. “D.O.s receive ongoing musculoskeletal training, and many practice OMT along with allopathic treatments,” says Rosenau’s colleague, family medicine physician Stephen Miller, D.O. “A majority—about 60 percent—go into primary care and focus on ‘wellness’ medicine, emphasizing the role of family history, stress, diet, exercise and other lifestyle factors in health.”

The two fields also differ in size. There are currently 20 osteopathic medical schools around the country, compared to 125 allopathic medical schools. D.O.s represent 6 percent of American doctors (about 56,000), but their numbers are rising—up 67 percent since 1990. That makes osteopathy one of the fastest-growing medical professions.

The lines between D.O. and M.D. continue to blur as the two fields come closer together. “D.O.s have gone from focusing only on OMT to using drugs and surgery, and M.D.s have incorporated more holistic thinking and high-touch medicine,” Rosenau says. “We’ve drawn the best from each other, enhancing care for all our patients.”

Want to Know More about selecting a doctor? For a step-by-step guide and biographies of local physicians, call 610-402-CARE or visit www.lvh.org/findadoctor.

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