What are the differences between the two generalist fields?
Academic internist Robert Centor gives his perspective, highlighting differences in philosophy, focus, program rigor, and the involvement of obstetrics and pediatrics.
I found the observation about the variability of family practice program’s rigor interesting, with Dr. Centor saying “the better programs do a wonderful job, but there remain too many family medicine programs which do not provide rigorous training . . . this problem is much less significant in internal medicine training.”
With the focus on inpatient care, that may be true. However, there are certainly less-rigorous internal medicine programs out there.
His bottom line? “If you are focused on outpatient practice, you should find a rigorous family medicine program. If you think you might do a significant amount of inpatient work, then I would favor internal medicine.”
Judging by this conclusion, it is not a surprise that only 2 percent of internal medicine residents medical students (thanks for correcting me) opt for internal medicine primary care careers.
topics: family practice, internal medicine
