“Somebody who does something other than osteopathy”

摘要

Despite the longstanding presence of osteopathic physicians in the medical community, an apparent misunderstanding regarding osteopathic medicine among pundits and press has recently manifested. Specifically, when President Donald Trump was diagnosed with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), on October 2, 2020, the Physician to the President, Dr. Sean Conley (DO) was subsequently catapulted to the forefront of national headlines. On October 3rd, 2020, MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell questioned Dr. Conley’s competency via Twitter on the grounds that he “is not actually an MD.”1 Days later, on October 5th, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow questioned the President’s medical oversight by virtue of Dr. Conley being an “osteopath,”2 suggesting that oversight should instead be conducted by “at least an internist” or “somebody who does something other than osteopathy.”