White House DO shares lessons learned, advice for a fulfilling career

President Joe Biden’s physician, Kevin O’Connor, DO, is a decorated military physician who first served as a White House physician during the George W. Bush administration before becoming the physician for then-Vice President Biden and Physician to the President in 2021. Dr. O’Connor recently spoke to DOs and osteopathic medical students at OMED24, where he discussed his trajectory from the military to the White House and what he learned from the people who helped guide him along the way.

“Ask anyone who knows me—I’m a simple man who has found himself in extraordinary circumstances frequently,” said Dr. O’Connor as he walked viewers through his unique and exciting career trajectory. He stresses the importance of welcoming these surprises and experiences, since you never know where they might take you.

Dr. O’Connor’s full talk is now available on the OMED24 platform, where participants can also access virtual educational content from 20 medical specialties through Dec. 31 and obtain up to 50 hours of CME credit.

Find mentors and connect with them

In his talk, Dr. O’Connor shared that in his career, he has found his DO attributes—particularly the ability to provide osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT)—to be extremely advantageous. He noted that when students ask him for advice about careers in the medical field, he stresses the importance of finding mentors and connecting with them.

In fact, Dr. O’Connor says the best advice he ever received in his career was simply to express interest in what you’d like to do.

“People want to see you succeed … But you have to tell them what you want,” he said. “If I don’t know what you want, how can I help you get it?”

A key way to begin going about this, he recommends, is to identify who you need to speak to, and then express your interest. Hustling as you self-advocate for your goals will take you far, Dr. O’Connor says.

Create your own path

Dr. O’Connor also stressed the importance of providing OMT. He himself began providing OMT to patients on day one of his active duty service.

“Embrace what makes you different—OMT makes you different,” he said, noting that OMT sets DOs apart from other physicians.

“Young pre-meds have asked me very candidly if being a DO has given me a disadvantage,” said Dr. O’Connor. “Every single important door that opened for me in my career was in some way related to OMT and being an osteopathic physician. Ain’t that a hoot?”

Related reading:

Get to know President Joe Biden’s personal physician, Kevin O’Connor, DO

Meet the DO who served in the White House Medical Unit during the Reagan administration