Family Medicine Doctor

Nature of the work

A family physician is concerned with the total health care of the individual and the family and is trained to diagnose and treat a wide variety of ailments in patients of all ages. The family physician is trained to care for children as well as adults, including the unique needs of women and the elderly, preventive medicine, and behavioral science. Special emphasis is placed on the primary care of families, utilizing consultants, and community resources when appropriate.¹

Family physicians can receive training in the following subspecialties:

adolescent medicine, which requires multidisciplinary training in the unique physical, psychological, and social characteristics of adolescents and their health-care problems and needs.

geriatric medicine, which requires knowledge of the aging process including the diagnostic, therapeutic, preventive, and rehabilitative aspects of illness in the elderly.

hospice and palliative medicine, which involves preventing and relieving the suffering experienced by patients with life-limiting illnesses.

sleep medicine, which involves diagnosing and managing the clinical conditions that occur during sleep, disturb sleep, or are affected by disturbances.

sports medicine, which involves training physicians to be responsible for continuous care related to the enhancement of health and fitness as well as the prevention of injury and illness.

Training/residency information

The residency training for family practice is three years. An additional year of training is required to be certified in a subspecialty.

References
1 The American Board of Medical Specialties. Guide to Physician Specialties. Evanston, IL: American Board of Medical Specialties; February 2008.
2 2010 Physician Compensation Survey [special feature]. Modern Healthcare . July 19, 2010: 20–26.