http://www.osteopathic.org/inside-aoa/Pages/ACGM E-…
If I’m reading this right, that means that as a (hopefully) class of 2017 med student, I won’t have to take the USMLE to apply to MD residencies if I go to a DO school, and vice versa for MD’s with the COMLEX.
Very cool 
Whoa! This is ground breaking…
(Am I reading this right?)
How are MD’s going to complete the manipulation portion of a DO residency?
I’m on a webcast about it now and that came up. Obviously the details are nailed down, but there would be certain pre-reqs / competencies that would need to be met.
I’ve been thinking about this a lot since last night when I heard that there would be an announcement (I’d been hearing the rumors for months about this so I figured that this was it).
I can see how this might be easier during the residency application process for D.O.s who planned to apply to D.O and M.D. residency programs. Still, I’m concerned and I’m going to wait to figure out what everyone got out of this.
My overall feeling is worry. I know that medicine is changing but being part of a system where the goalposts keep changing is very stressful, I can clearly see that now.
I am under the impression that currently many, if not most, allopathic (MD) residencies will accept a COMLEX score; you do not have to take the USMLE as a DO graduate to apply.
According to the DO school I interviewed at last weekend, something like 80% of their students take the USMLE because it’s needed to match into MD residency programs, and there’s a lack of DO residency programs out west. More of their graduates match into MD rather than DO residencies.
An aside note here on residency for the “little brother” of medicine that beginning July 2013 all podiatry post-graduate programs will be minimum of three years. (my older but shorter brother is a podiatrist for some 30 years now).
It is interesting that there was project some years ago called vision 2015 (that is all but dead now) trying to organize, standardize, centralized, etc MD, DO, and DPM into something like a single body or umbrella organization.
I can’t help but see this as good news. Since I would be graduating in 7 years 
from med school this would open up much more programs for DO’s as well as for MD’s. As long as this doesn’t turn into DO programs selling out and taking in more MD’s. It will be interesting to see what happens as far as the ratio of MD/DO in programs and addressing inconsistencies.
This is indeed good news from the residency programs’ standpoint. Like most FM programs we are dually accredited and so we try to keep things as transparent as possible for applicants and residents, but it seems like I’m always preparing for an accreditation site visit! Having one body to answer to will definitely be a change for the better. From what I understand right now, the emphasis is one-way to improve access to DOs entering MD residencies and fellowships. The details for MDs going to DO programs have yet to be addressed. Stay tuned…this is bound to get interesting.
I’m pretty excited about this because it should make my life easier. As a Canadian, I was required by the Canadian Medical Associations to complete an ACGME accredited residency, even though I will be getting a DO degree (they didn’t recognized AOA residencies). That should no longer be an issue. At least I hope so.
I really hope that it makes it easier for our U.S. trained physicians (regardless of citizenship) to get into good residency programs BUT I’m concerned about how the issue of international medical graduates will be handled. I just wish that there has been more hashed out - we just don’t know anything at this point and that is worrisome. Honestly, besides (potentially) reducing the hassle for some osteopathic students, I don’t see the upside. MD students could potentially compete for spots that were traditionally osteopathic spots while nothing really changes for osteopathic students as I don’t think that the current bias against D.O.s in some programs will change anytime soon. In other words, I don’t think that this really will change anything about what is available to osteopathic students: residencies that didn’t want them before still won’t want them.
I’ve heard that IMGs will have a tougher time getting into U.S. residencies under that new system but I don’t think that anyone has any information.
I am interested in how this will turn out as well. I talked to a D.O. resident regarding this, and she felt it would be detrimental to D.O.'s. Apparently, she feels there is a risk that some DO residencies will not survive accreditation, and just disappear, leaving only M.D. residencies and less of them at that.
@ telomerase: Great point and legitimate concerns, but from another perspective (associate PD of dually accredited FM program), the playing field is now leveled for applicants to programs that ARE accepting of DOs. Last year I had the misfortune of having to turn away an excellent applicant because our DO positions were filled. Personally, I’m happy that won’t be an issue when/if this change takes effect – everybody has an equal shot at every position. As for IMGs, the increasing number of stateside graduates with no concurrent increase in residency complement is going to affect them regardless. I don’t know if this latest decision by the ACGME changes that one way or another. I can only hope the looming physician shortage will grease the skids for non-trads taking the IMG route as well.
@ terevet: The ACGME accreditation is a work in progress right now. 2013 will mostly be a moratorium year while the ACGME retools the process for everybody. So this is actually a perfect time to combine the accreditation of AOA and ACGME. Having been through both accreditations, there is already a lot of compatibility between the two, and I thought the AOA process was more rigorous. I hope with this new proposal that the ACGME and AOA are finally recognizing the synergy that exists at the program level, and the AOA programs will not only survive but grow. Having MDs and DOs train in the same program is enormously rewarding to both.