>From:    Claire C <[log in to unmask]>
>
>I want to point out that the title "Doctor" is valid for more than
>just MDs.  Those with a Doctor of Chiropracty are doctors (and yes,
>Northwestern offers a Doctor of Chiropracty).  Those with DO degrees
>(Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine) are doctors.  DVMs (Doctor of
>Veterinary Medicine) are doctors.  ODs are Doctors of Optometry.  DDSs
>are Doctors of Dental Science (dentists).  NDs are naturopathic doctors.
>AcDs are doctors of acupuncture (recognized in Canada and some states).
 
Claire & all, I stand corrected about the usage of the title "doctor"
for chiropractors and some other professional health care practitioners.
I had checked the NHSU curriculae and found nothing beyond a master's
degree.  The College of Chiropractic awards a "doctor of chiropractic"
degree after just 10 trimesters of study (including clinical work), about
3 1/2 years, beyond a minimum 3 years' undergraduate work.  This is well
below the average 7 postgraduate years required to obtain a doctoral
degree (Ph.D.), including research, coursework and dissertation, or
the 11-12 years required for an MD specializing in a field such as in
oncology.
 
The degrees conferred by the Northwestern College of Chiropractic,
however, are not doctoral degrees.  My husband and a number of our
friends have the Ph.D., and I worked at a major doctoral research
university for four years.  You're right, though, that (at least in
our culture) it's difficult to regard an acupuncturist, naturopath or
chiropractor in the same way we regard a Ph.D., veterinarian or dental
surgeon.
 
To me, the manner in which Eric Weisman refers to himself as "Dr. Eric
Weisman" is pretentious at best, and purposely misleading at worst.
 
Susann Thiel
[Posted in FML issue 5348]