Dear all.
This is a common practice to prefix Dr. After completing PhD in any discipline. May be science arts or commerce. This really creates confusion many times.
Peers plz suggest and if possible may something be done to eliminate this confusion . this is a personal query. nothing personal to anybody. Just enlight what you feel.
Responses awaited?
Regards
Partha
It's a matter of personal choice.
I prefer to be called Peterson. Not Doctor Peterson. And yes I have a PhD
Getting people to call you Doctor Partha sounds reputable and can make you feel good about yourself.
A PhD holder may wish to be addressed without a prefix
Doctorate should not be confused with Doctors. The term Doctor is specifically used for the Physicians and thus many times creates confusion. I personally feel Medical doctor, Veterinary doctor, Dentists, Homeopathy, Physiotherapist, Ayurvedic doctors should also be differentiated among st them as well. as the scope is different for all. And remaining doctorate degrees should have a specific suffix or prefix for the common men to understand.
Thank You Peterson K Ozili sir for your response.. Lets see whats majority things about?
Regards
Partha
Interesting question.
My own view is that this matter is situation dependent.
I mostly work in healthcare and have a PhD that is not medical. Therefore, I don't really use the Dr. prefix as it can cause confusion. I don't use it in general life either - booking a flight, restaurant table or anything like that.
If I were working with someone from academia or a publication perhaps, I would be expected to use it and I try to remember to do so.
Anyway, I don't find it particularly confusing but I do try to take care to use the pre-fix (and post-nominal stuff) where it is the expected.
Perhaps this links to a wider discussion about whether a PhD is just the new Masters, as "qualification inflation" seems to have taken root in a number of organisations and working environments.
Anyway, like the question and I'm sure you'll spark a big debate!!
Good luck with your work....
We need to differentiate between the title and the profession! If you do have a PhD, then you should have Dr as your title but this doesn’t mean your profession is a doctor. Similarly, medical Drs without PhDs should not be using Dr before their names. That’s why some GPs have Mr & Ms before their names. This should not cause confusion.
Many people have a dream of becoming a Dr. But there may be several issues like not interested in a science background, weak heart to face dissections, expensive and long period of study, etc. So to fulfil their dream of being called a Dr. the degree of PhD is the only option. It is a doctorate degree not to be confused with medical practitioners. But I personally don't feel any harm in calling PHD by sufficing Dr to his/her name.
Like always, if the context ist clear, the meaning is clear too. Medical vs. scientific context should be clarified.
Why you are confusing again? It was clarified many times. In medical field doctorate study is DM ie Doctor of medicine.
There is no confusion as a medical doctor is different from an academic doctor. Hence, a Doctor of philosophy (Dr.) say in Arts or other disciplines is not the same as a medical doctor in medicine.
Dear Oliver Bright mam.
When we write Dr. Xyz can we specify what does actually mean.. a DM. Or a PhD in any stream.
Unless and until their designation and qualifications are mentioned how can we know. And where is the confusion? And where is clarity?
Medical doctors can have a PhD as well ;o)
Yes, a PhD can be referred to as a Dr. without being mistaken as a medical doctor.
I think what is also confusing is the different types of PhD - all can use the formal designation Dr. however not all are equal - I think there should be some significant differentiation in this area.
Re the original comment I think the Dr. should be followed by some thing like Dr. (Medical) for those that are 'academics' it should perhaps be Dr. (Academic)
May I share a joke with you?
A couple of women embark on a cruise, with their minds set to find a rich husband. After a couple of days they discuss their attempts. One of them says, that she did find a good candidate.
- Is he a doctor?
- Sort of...
- What do you mean?
- Well, he is a dentist.
- Thank god he's not a PhD.
As for medical doctors who are not PhDs, I don't think there is usually much confusion. And I don't know many PhD doctors that actually insist of people using Doctor as a title for them.
Never see there is much confusion. Doctors of medicine are normall y practising doctors. Doctors of philosophy work normally in areas of research. Finally, in Scotland the most highly qualified and specialised doctors of medicine, I.e. surgeons, revert to being called ‘Mr.’ For example, Mr. Robb, who in his day was one of the best surgeons in Scotland based in Inverness. NOT Dr. Robb.
There is some confusion in the minds of the general public. Shortly after I finished my PhD in Australia I visited my former landlady in Auckland. When I told here I was now Dr Pain, she said "Yes, but you not a real doctor".
It is just terminology, and varied usages of a word or meanings of a title that one has to know, or which should become clear from the context, with no confusion anywhere. In fact, one might question not only the "Doctor" but also the "Philosophy" (science used to called "natural philosophy"), because PhD's are not only in science but in every field including the arts and languages. That's how it is. The question by Dr.? PPS and the series of answers - mine included - were quite unnecessary, but hopefully they cleared the issue and will terminate here without starting a new debate. Thanks,
Dear Dr. Colin.
Rightly said. There is a lot of confussion due to salutations and sometimes this causes some panic as well..
The 'D' in PhD stands for Doctor so all PhDs can use the title of Doctor by the original latin usage going back many centuries. Thus academic PhDs are the real doctors by definition. The common usage of Doctor as a title in the medical profession has come about much more recently, but strangely surgeons insist on being called Mr, Ms, etc. Thus the real question is - should medical practitioners without a PhD (most of them) be entitled to be referred to as Doctor?
True. Mr. Peter
There should be a clear cut difference between a physician and a doctorates...
The 'Doctor' is one of Philosophy; not primarily medicine, geology, physics, or basket-weaving. The title acknowledges a level of competence in an objective approach to any research; defining the problem, collecting the data, and presenting a model for wider consideration. That is the 'philosophy' and it applies to any discipline.
"Dr" is applied to anyone who as achieved doctoral level studies, regardless of field. It just means "scholar".
Physicians who have not done doctoral studies (e.g. MD), are called "Dr." by courtesy only, as they generally are only have a double degree (e.g. MBBS)
Jonathan D. A. Clarke
This true but unforntunately in many country MBBS & MD projecting himself as real doctor in front of public. They also consider them as a real doctor. Now a days they try to grab the opportunities of real doctors (i.e PhD) in medical institutes specially in paramedics subject like biochemistry, Microbiology, genetics etc. Covid pandemic is good example, Covid vaccine and Dignostics developed by Researchers (mainly Ph.Ds) in lab. Researchers are countinue working in lab, not come directly in front of society or media but advantage has been taken by Physicians becuse they have more face value in front of society.
That is the precisely the definition of a Dr., someone who holds a PhD :)
People either call me George or Dr. Amarantidis. I always introduce myself using my first name only, but in formal correspondence I use Dr. Amarantidis
I hope this elaboration helps.
For the question, "Should a Ph.D. be called Doctor?" the gist of the attached file says - We (Ph.D.) are the real doctors.
I submit that PhD@ Degree holders should also referred to as Doctors.
This is a good question. The immigration form shows 'doctor' not 'Dr.' I was searching if it is the same thing? Can a PhD use a title 'Doctor' instead of 'Dr.'?
Dr. Winter correctly identifies the medical degrees awards in Scotland. Those gaining such awards, I.e. MB ChB (Batchelor of Medicine , Batchelor of Chirurgery), are then by convention addressed as Doctors. Funnily though in Scotland when they go on to train as Consultants and Surgeons, they prefer to be referred to as Mr. My Father many years ago had his colostomy operation performed by a Mr. Robb in Inverness. Mr. Robb by the way was a highly regarded surgeon in Scotland.
True, Masters degrees are also post grad. and yet in Scotland MA is equivalent to a BA in England. My Uncle Bill gained a position as Headmaster of Ripon Grammar 1935-1957 on the strength of his Scottish MA (or so we used to say!).
Kind regards
George
The term Doctor comes from the Latin word for teacher. The original Doctors were teachers. This is where the title of Doctor originates.
Medical practitioners were professions you wouldn't associate with medicine nowadays, such as barbers, or as they were known in medieval times, barber-surgeons.
Medical practitioners were given the honorary use of the title Doctor in recognition of all the hard work they put in to be allowed to practice medicine.
Ergo, to eliminate the 'confusion' it should be that medical practitioners are referred as barber-surgeons again, with PhD holders being the sole users of the title of Doctor.
Doctors nowadays put the initials MD after their name, and they add PhD only if they have a doctorate. Ok, they are called doctors, but they'd better not prefix their names with Dr, to avoid confusion.
Over the years the correct usage of the term Dr has almost been lost in translation. It has its origins in the same place as the PhD a degree awarded to the highest teachers and researchers in universities. The The Canadian Press Stylebook which has decreed that the title of doctor should be reserved for medical doctors (physicians) have added to the confusion by restricting the title to people who should otherwise be known as physicians or MDs.
Some MDs occasionally frown at PhD in Physics, Computer Science, Mathematics etc al yet these are the real doctors. However a compromise can be reached where the MDs are allowed to walk away with the Dr title and PhDs walk away as PhDs. I think it is cooler to be Catherine Smith Ph.D as opposed to being Dr Catherine Smith.
I understand and largely agree with you @ Jonathan D.A. Clark. It is puzzling how a misnomer became the norm over the years in many cultures and has been soiled to some extent as a result and yet the PhD is the "default" and epitome of doctorate qualifications.
I understand and largely agree with you @ Jonathan D.A. Clark. It is puzzling how a misnomer became the norm over the years in many cultures and has been soiled to some extent as a result and yet the PhD is the "default" and epitome of doctorate qualifications.
Very prospectives. I feel there sld be a clearcut demarcation in salutations of physician and a doctorate. This should not be confiusing or creat a doubt amongst others.
This is a very interesting conversation and it appears to be a purely academic exercise. It has become much more than that in the State of California (CA). I am a registered nurse and nurse practitioner (NP) practicing in CA. An NP in CA, in 11/2022, was prosecuted and fined $19,750 (USD) for using the title "doctor" and "Dr" before her name. She has an earned Doctorate in Nursing Practice (DNP) degree and always identified herself as a nurse practitioner. The DNP degree takes an additional 2 to 3 years after Bachelor's (4 to 5 years) and Master's (2 to 3 years) Degrees in Nursing. The law used to prosecute this individual is CA State Business and Professions Code 2054, which states:
"Any person who uses in any sign, business card, or letterhead, or, in an advertisement, the words "doctor" or "physician," the letters or prefix "Dr.," the initials "M.D.," or any other terms or letters indicating or implying that he or she is a physician and surgeon, physician, surgeon, or practitioner under the terms of this or any other law, or that he or she is entitled to practice hereunder, or who represents or holds himself or herself out as a physician and surgeon, physician, surgeon, or practitioner under the terms of this or any other law, without having at the time of so doing a valid, unrevoked, and unsuspended certificate as a physician and surgeon under this chapter, is guilty of a misdemeanor."
I agree with the previous comments that a doctoral degree entitles a person to use the title "doctor." Coincidentally, a law allowing nurse practitioners to practice independently in CA will be implemented 01/01/2023.
Sincerely,
Patricia Weyland, PhD, RN, APRN-CNP, FNP-BC, LNC
Patricia,
As your colleague gained a doctorate, she has every right to use the title Doctor. I am astonished that a CA court could Be so out of touch with reality As to fine her almost $20,000 for using Dr.
kind regards
George Strachan
A PhD, or Doctor of Philosophy, is a specific type of doctorate degree that focuses on research in a particular field. It is highly theoretical and involves extensive research to generate new knowledge. On the other hand, a doctorate degree is an umbrella term for any doctoral-level degree.
The term doctor can be traced back to the late 1200s, and it stems from a Latin word meaning “to teach.” It wasn’t used to describe a licensed medical practitioner until about 1400, and it wasn’t used as such with regularity until the late 1600s. It replaced the former word used for medical doctors—leech, which is now considered archaic.
PhD came before other XD titles. Doctor is a title, the profession is chemist, physicist, economist, dentist, lawyer, physician, surgeon etc. Most countries consider "going to see a physician" not a doctor, the former being the profession of the specialist vs latter being a title. I hold a PhD in Chemistry and I'm addressed with the Dr prefix. No entity can take away an earned degree and associated title. It is personal choice of using it or not and it is the choice of the degree holder how to be addressed.
I previously posted a comment regarding the conviction of a nurse practitioner in California (CA), with a doctoral degree, for using the title "doctor" and placing "Dr." before her written name. Below is a link to a lawsuit that has just been filed in CA alleging the law violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution.
Lawsuit: https://canpweb.org/canp/assets/File/Chapter%20Documents/FILE_3427.pdf
If a PhD holder wishes to be called Doctor, you should call him Doctor.
I know a few PhD holders who don't like to be called "Doctor".
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