•

ever, that family practice was
what he wanted.
"The more I talked to the stu-
dents, the more I felt the univer-
sities looked down on primary
care," he said. "I kept saying to
my wife that primary care was
an area I would enjoy. I felt the
people part was more rewarding."
Even with the strong history of
osteopathic medicine in Michigan,
Dr. Bickle has found that patients
-, still ask him to explain the differ-
ence between a D.O. and an M.D.
"Some think we're bone doctors or
they confuse us with orthopedics.
I tell them that we were started
by an M.D. who broke off with the
allopaths because there was too
much emphasis on the disease
process and medications and not
enough on the patient."
D.O.s can be found in all med-
ical specialties. Take 43-year-old
Susan Hendrix for example, a gy-
necologist with Detroit Medical
Center's Hutzel Hospital and
Wayne State University. She is
also the only D.O. to head up a
site for the Women's Health Ini-
tiative. It is a role which makes
her unique among her osteo-
pathic colleagues.
After receiving $9.2 million to
fund the Detroit site — the
largest grant ever received by
Wayne State — it is Dr. Hendrix'
job to reach out to women ages
50 to 79 to determine what puts
these women at risk for heart dis-
ease, osteoporosis and breast can-
cer. It has been a rewarding but
frustrating time for her and a role
she didn't imagine when she
graduated from Michigan State
University College of Osteopathic
Medicine in 1983.
Dr. Hendrix finds that most al-
lopathic colleagues are support-
ive of the D.O.s.
"Only a few M.D.s may not
treat me the same," said Dr. Hen-
drix, who trained in an M.D. res-
idency program and is married
to an allopathic physician. "We
like to think our training focus-
es on primary care and on the pa-
tient but all M.D.s and D.O.s are
trying to do that."
There are still challenges fac-
ing osteopaths. One problem fac-
ing D.O.s who work in allopathic
hospitals is continuing medical
education credits required for li-
censure.
"D.O.s need 50 credits a year,
but it's a huge problem because
we have to attend D.O.-sponsored
medical conferences, not allo-
pathic conferences. I can't get the
credits at work because they are
M.D. conferences," said Dr. Hen-
drix. On the other hand, she says
it is ironic that many D.O.s are
now joining the American Med-
ical Association, an organization
for allopathic physicians.
Despite the philosophical dif-
ferences, added flr;Randall
D.O.s cal wave/Kew! they
want in medicine, We a good pro.
fession," he said. Li

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