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Doctor of Medicine (M.D. or MD, from the Latin Medicinæ Doctor meaning "Teacher of Medicine,") is a doctoral degree for physicians. How the term MD is applied varies between countries - it is a first professional degree in some countries, for example in the USA and Canada, while in some countries it is a higher doctoral academic research degree resembling a PhD, for example in the United Kingdom, Australia and Germany. In the UK and countries following the British model, the equivalent for professional purposes of the American MD degree is the MBChB or MBBS ("Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery". History of a Medical Degree: According to Douglas Guthrie, who bases his account on L Thorndike, medical men were first called "Doctor" at the Medical School of Salerno. He states that the Emperor Frederick II decreed in 1221 that no one should practice medicine until he had been publicly examined and approved by the masters of Salerno. The course lasted 5 years, and to start one had to be 21 years old and show proof of legitimacy and of three years study of logic. The course was followed by a year of supervised practice. After the laureation ceremony the practitioners could call themselves "magister" or "doctor." United States and Canada: Within the United States, MDs are awarded by LCME-accredited medical schools. The Liaison Committee on Medical Education is an independent body sponsored by the Association of American Medical Colleges and the American Medical Association, the AMA. Admissions to medical schools in the United States are competitive, with 17,800 of the approximately 47,000 applicants matriculating to a medical school. Before graduating from a medical school and achieving the degree of Medical Doctor, students have to pass the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 and to take (but not necessarily pass) both the Clinical Knowledge and Clinical Skills parts of Step 2. The MD degree is typically earned in four years. Following the awarding of the MD, physicians who wish to practice in the United States are required to complete at least one internship year (PGY-1) and pass the USMLE Step 3. In order to receive Board Eligible or Board Accredited status in a specialty of medicine such as general surgery or internal medicine, then undergo additional specialized training in the form of a residency. Those who wish to further specialize in areas such as cardiology or interventional radiology then complete a fellowship. Depending upon the physician's chosen field, residencies and fellowships involve an additional three to eight years of training after obtaining the MD. This can be lengthened with additional research years, which can last one, two, or more years. In Canada, the MD is the basic medical degree required to practice medicine. At McGill University in Montreal, M.D., C.M. (Medicinae Doctor et Chirurgiae Magister or a Doctor of Medicine and Master of Surgery sometimes also written MDCM) degrees are awarded. Even though the MD is a first professional degree and not a doctorate of research (ie. PhD), many holders of the MD degree conduct clinical and basic scientific research and publish in peer-reviewed journals during training and after graduation. Medical Scientist Programs are offered at many universities which are a combined medical degree and PhD. Some MDs choose a research career and receive funding from the NIH as well as other sources such as the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. A few even go on to become Nobel Laureates. If you have information or links that you would like included in MDPedia™, please email us at:
According to Sir John Bagot Glubb, Syed Farid Alatas, and S. M. Imamuddin, the first medical schools to issue academic degrees and diplomas were the Bimaristan teaching hospitals of the medieval Islamic world. The first of these institutions was opened in Baghdad during the time of Harun al-Rashid. They then appeared in Egypt from 872 and then in Islamic Spain, Persia and the Maghreb thereafter. Physicians and surgeons at these hospital-universities gave lectures on Islamic medicine to medical students and then a medical diploma or degree was issued to students who were qualified to be practicing physicians.
The MB or Bachelor of Medicine was also the first type of medical degree to be granted in the United States and Canada. The first medical schools that granted the MB degree were Penn, Harvard, Toronto, Maryland, and Columbia. These first few North American medical schools that were established were (for the most part) founded by physicians and surgeons who had been trained in England and Scotland. University medical education in England culminated with the MB qualification, and in Scotland the MD, until from the mid-19th century the public bodies who regulated medical practice at the time required practitioners in Scotland as well as England to hold the two the dual Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degrees (MB BS/MBChB/MB BChir/BM BCh etc). North American Medical schools switched to the tradition of the Ancient universities of Scotland and began granting the MD title rather than the MB mostly throughout the 1800s. Columbia University in New York (which at the time was referred to as King's College of Medicine) was the first American University to grant the MD degree instead of the MB.