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Is a professional Doctorate of Podiatry respected?

Discussion in 'Australia' started by Silvester, Mar 27, 2012.

  1. Silvester

    Silvester Member


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    Good evening all,

    I am contemplating starting a Professional Doctorate in Podiatry offered at the University of Western Australia. However, before engaging in a long term commitment I want to know how this qualification is seen by the industry. It is relatively new. The advantage is that it offers one year of papers including advanced podiatric medicine and surgery followed by a two year thesis.

    The other option is a Masters or PhD.

    I would be interested to hear peoples thoughts on the Doctorate and its place in the industry.
    Cheers
     
  2. pdoan01

    pdoan01 Active Member

    to what doctorate are you refering to? the DPM or the DCP?, or the DPOD?

    they are all very differrent degrees.

    the DPM is the qualification that will give you general registration as a podiatrist. it is equivalent to all degrees of podiatry in australia that result in general registration.

    i believe the DCP is the podiatric surgery degree.

    although in the workplace the DPM might look really good and impressive it is still the same degree as a BPOD, BPODM OR MPODM
     
  3. Silvester

    Silvester Member

    I was referring to the Doctor of Podiatry, I already have a BHSc(hons) in Podiatry and I am able to practice. I am not interested in the Surgery pathway. Sorry for the confusion. I was trying to making the distinction by saying it is a professional doctorate when in comparison to a PhD as it can be interpreted as the same qualification.

    The Doctor of Podiatry is equivalent in level of a PhD except it has core papers for advanced podiatric medicine, surgery etc and a shorter thesis period. This qualification is only offered at UWA, so I was wondering how it was viewed by other clinicians? Would it advance a Podiatrist to a more senior role?
     
  4. LuckyLisfranc

    LuckyLisfranc Well-Known Member

    It depends on what you wish to obtain a doctorate for.

    A PhD is the gold standard research higher degree. If you wish to pursue a career in academia this is what you need. This will hold you in good stead if you wish to get a full time academic appointment.

    If you simply wish to improve your clinical acumen and potential employability then a professional doctorate is the path to follow.

    What do you want to "get out of it" - other than a piece of paper?

    If you want to broaden your scope of practice and do things other podiatrists can't do, then do the DClinPod. The DPod etc will not (at this time) allow you to do anything other than what a general podiatrists does.

    If you are going to do a doctorate, you want to get something out of it other than a piece of paper, IMHO.

    LL
     
  5. Burke

    Burke Member

    Hi Silvester,
    A PhD or Professional Doctorate may open doors and increase your employability, but at the end of the day its the person who commands respect, not the title. I am currently enrolled in the DClinPod (about half way through) and am enjoying the experience. I see this pathway as giving me a professional Doctorate, but also clinical skills that equate to more income earning potential, i.e. In private practice I could perform surgeries, but the title and academic content of the DClinPod may also open doors to University academic positions, since there is also a thesis/research component of the training. Its a big investment of both time and money enrolling in one of these courses, so it pays to think through what you really want out of it. Some people have passions they are driven to pursue, and they may choose a PhD topic on this one passion, or you may just wish to up skill and choose a professional doctorate, such as the DClinPod at UWA. Another thing to consider is the cost between these two choices. The PhD (otherwise known as the DPM at UWA) is essentially free since the uni wishes to encourage research. The DClinPod costs more to do. Come down to UWA or ask to talk to one of the Post Graduates like myself if you want to know more.

    Cheers
    Burke
     
  6. pdoan01

    pdoan01 Active Member

    I believe the DPM that is strting in 2013 is not a PhD but a clinical doctorate leading to registration as a podiatrist.

    http://www.podiatry.surgery.uwa.edu.au/courses/postgraduate/dr-pod-med
     
  7. Burke

    Burke Member

    Yes pdoan01,
    Things have got confusing in recent times. This year UWA ceased the undergraduate podiatry course, and its due to be replaced with the post grad entry Doctor of Podiatric Medicine degree starting 2013. This course is designed as an advanced post graduate entry into the profession, not for already registered podiatrists. The research course I was thinking of is now called Doctor of Podiatry
    http://www.podiatry.surgery.uwa.edu.au/courses/postgraduate/dpod
    I believe that the dropping of the undergraduate course and the advent of the post graduate entry will make the current masters course redundant. I believe there are plans to cease the masters course soon. The best thing to do would be ring Prof Alan Bryant, he is very approachable. The DClinPod course has two streams, the surgical pathway, and the Podiatric Physician pathway. I would be surprised if you couldn't tailor one of these courses to get what you want.
    Cheers
    Burke
     
  8. pdoan01

    pdoan01 Active Member

    Burke,

    Firstly I believe that the DPM is still the same degree as any other podiatry degree that is recognised by the podiatry board of Australia. the only difference is that it is postgraduate and taking a more 'Americanised' approach for training podiatrists in Australia. Its still just a basic podiatric/podiatric medicine degree that leads to general registration. That being said its great that UWA want to train more matured and graduate students for producing more competent podiatrists.

    Secondly, you say DClinPod allows podiatrists to be podiatric physicians. Now are podiatrists not podiatric physicians? whats the difference between those terms? what constitutes a physician? from history a physician is someone who weilds a scalpal? according to USA law and USA medicare program podiatrists are physicians, and not all can do recontructive foot and ankle surgery, yet they are still physicians. could you please clarify what a podaitric physician is?
     
  9. Burke

    Burke Member

    Hi pdoan01,
    You seem very firm in your beliefs, I would like to know what you base them on? Have you seen the course syllabus for the new DPM? Or perhaps you are just agitating. If you consider that the DPM we are referring to leaves out all the undergraduate basic foundation courses, since it is a post grad course, and that it runs for 3 years, but has extended semesters making it essentially a 4 year course crammed into 3, how can you compare it to a basic undergraduate podiatry course? Having seen the syllabus and been party to meetings involving clinical placements for the course, its hard not to view it any other way than an advanced entry to the profession over the standard undergraduate entry process. I find this quiet exciting, and wish I had the choice to enter the profession this way. There does seem to be a shift towards the American style post grad uni experience, but not just with Podiatry. Medicine, Dentistry and engineering have also gone post grad only.

    I see your confusion with the Podiatric Physican term. However consider the value of doing a Masters in Podiatric Medicine, when don't we already practice podiatry medicine? The purpose is to practice it at a higher lever. The DClinPod version of the Podiatric Physician was aimed at increasing skills with managing the High Risk foot. I could see this as being valuable in the hospital environment working with multidisciplinary groups, and having a higher level of training in advanced imaging, antibiotic therapies, and surgical options for diabetic wounds etc. Hop online and read this link
    http://www.surgery.uwa.edu.au/courses/postgraduate/coursework/dclinpod
    Please don't get hung up on titles, its the actual content of the course, and the professionalism of the staff and uni offering them that makes them valuable. If you are in Perth please come down to the uni. I am sure you will be inspired by what you see.
     
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