Our Past, Present, and Future Are in Our Hands
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Michael A. Seffinger
“ No matter what your history has been, your destiny is what you create today.”
— Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free
History is sometimes a combination of facts and hearsay—perspectives from varying points of view and some twisted accounts of occurrences with opinions and interpretations thrown in for color. It is challenging to piece together the facts of an event and how it leads to another, the motivations of the people behind the events, and the effects they have on people, institutions, and society, at that time and well into the future. For Norman Gevitz, PhD, an authority on osteopathic history for more than 3 decades, this challenge is a passion. He has authored numerous books, chapters, and articles on the history and sociology of medicine; has been a professor at several colleges of osteopathic medicine (currently professor and senior vice president for Academic Affairs at the A.T. Still University Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine in Missouri); and has taught and lectured worldwide. Throughout his illustrious career, he has stimulated the osteopathic profession to re-examine its origins, purpose, vision, and mission.
In a special series of 6 articles that will be published throughout the year in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, Dr Gevitz tackles tough questions that have not been answered adequately by historians to date. He strives to paint a factual portrait of the development of osteopathy and the DO degree from its origins to the present, and he poses challenging questions for the profession. In the first article,1 which begins on page of this issue, he seeks the origin of osteopathy and the DO degree, Dr Still's purported MD degree, and the influence of Dr Still's “magnetic healer” and “bonesetter” years on the evolution of osteopathy.
In the second article,2 he examines the establishment of the American School of Osteopathy, the development of the curriculum, the legal battles that allowed graduates to treat patients, and the schools started by Dr Still's early students. The third article3 in the series attends to the evolving status of the DO degree in the first 3 decades of the 20th century and chronicles the ongoing debate within the profession whether to adopt the MD degree in addition to, or instead of, the DO degree.
The fourth article4 addresses the ensuing 30 years and the march toward the coveted physician's and surgeon's unlimited scope of practice license. This article includes the introduction of pharmacology into standard osteopathic curriculum and the events leading up to the infamous California merger incident. The fifth article5 describes the transformation of the Doctor of Osteopathy to the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine during the latter third of the 20th century, the continuing debate regarding the title of the osteopathic graduate degree, the tremendous growth of the profession, and the diminishing role of osteopathic manipulation in curricula and practice.
In his final article,6 Dr Gevitz gives his perspective on how the osteopathic medical profession should focus its time, talent, and treasure to solve its greatest problem: its identity. He gives a clear, concise, and focused path toward resolution of the century-old debate about the DO designation, its viability, and its value. These thought-provoking and enlightening articles should serve as a wakeup call to DOs in the United States to act accordingly and make a difference—the difference a DO makes.
References
1 Gevitz N . A degree of difference: the origins of osteopathy and first use of the “DO” designation. J Am Osteopath Assoc.2014;114(1):30-40. doi:10.7556/jaoa.2014.001.10.7556/jaoa.2014.005Search in Google Scholar PubMed
2 Gevitz N . The “Diplomate in Osteopathy”: from “school of bones” to “school of medicine.”J Am Osteopath Assoc.In press.10.7556/jaoa.2014.025Search in Google Scholar PubMed
3 Gevitz N . The “Doctor of Osteopathy”: expanding the scope of practice. J Am Osteopath Assoc.In press.10.7556/jaoa.2014.038Search in Google Scholar PubMed
4 Gevitz N . The “little m.d.” or the “Big D.O.”: the path to the California merger. J Am Osteopath Assoc.In press.10.7556/jaoa.2014.076Search in Google Scholar PubMed
5 Gevitz N . From “Doctor of Osteopathy” to “Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine”: a title change in the push for equality. J Am Osteopath Assoc.In press.10.7556/jaoa.2014.099Search in Google Scholar PubMed
6 Gevitz N . “Dig On”?: the future of the DO degree. J Am Osteopath Assoc.In press.Search in Google Scholar
© 2014 The American Osteopathic Association
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Articles in the same Issue
- Abstracts
- 2013 SOMA Abstracts and Poster Competition
- 2013 BIOM Abstracts and Poster Competition
- Editorial
- Our Past, Present, and Future Are in Our Hands
- Letters
- Osteopathic Manual Treatment and Ultrasound Therapy for Chronic Low Back Pain: An Illustration of Osteopathic Semantic Confusion
- Original Contribution
- The Persistence of Lumbar Somatic Dysfunction and Its Association With Bone Mineral Density
- Medical Education
- Patterns of Misrepresentation of Clinical Findings on Patient Notes During the COMLEX-USA Level 2-PE
- Special Communication
- A Degree of Difference: The Origins of Osteopathy and First Use of the “DO” Designation
- A Research Primer, Part 2: Guidelines for Developing a Research Project
- Case Report
- A Case of Seasonal Recurrent Myopericarditis
- A Case of Idiopathic Colonic Varices
- The Somatic Connection
- OMT Relieves Severe Chronic Low Back Pain
- Abdominal Muscles Are the Front Side of the Low Back
- Systematic Review Paints Incomplete Picture of OMT Research
- Manual Therapy or Exercise Effective for Hip or Knee Osteoarthritis
- Review of Severe Adverse Events From Spinal Manipulative Therapy of the Lumbopelvic Area
- A Chiropractic Perspective: Spinal Manipulative Therapy Is Not Causally Related to Stroke
- Clinical Images
- Abducens Palsy
- In Your Words
- No Place Like HOME
Articles in the same Issue
- Abstracts
- 2013 SOMA Abstracts and Poster Competition
- 2013 BIOM Abstracts and Poster Competition
- Editorial
- Our Past, Present, and Future Are in Our Hands
- Letters
- Osteopathic Manual Treatment and Ultrasound Therapy for Chronic Low Back Pain: An Illustration of Osteopathic Semantic Confusion
- Original Contribution
- The Persistence of Lumbar Somatic Dysfunction and Its Association With Bone Mineral Density
- Medical Education
- Patterns of Misrepresentation of Clinical Findings on Patient Notes During the COMLEX-USA Level 2-PE
- Special Communication
- A Degree of Difference: The Origins of Osteopathy and First Use of the “DO” Designation
- A Research Primer, Part 2: Guidelines for Developing a Research Project
- Case Report
- A Case of Seasonal Recurrent Myopericarditis
- A Case of Idiopathic Colonic Varices
- The Somatic Connection
- OMT Relieves Severe Chronic Low Back Pain
- Abdominal Muscles Are the Front Side of the Low Back
- Systematic Review Paints Incomplete Picture of OMT Research
- Manual Therapy or Exercise Effective for Hip or Knee Osteoarthritis
- Review of Severe Adverse Events From Spinal Manipulative Therapy of the Lumbopelvic Area
- A Chiropractic Perspective: Spinal Manipulative Therapy Is Not Causally Related to Stroke
- Clinical Images
- Abducens Palsy
- In Your Words
- No Place Like HOME
