What They Do
A general physician, also known as an internist or internal medicine specialist, focuses on the diagnosis and medical management of a broad range of adult health conditions. General physicians often serve as a primary point of contact for overall health concerns, coordinating care and referring patients to more specialized physicians when needed.
What They Treat
General physicians manage a wide range of common adult health conditions, including infections, high blood pressure, diabetes, and general health concerns that don't necessarily require a specialist. They also play a central role in preventive care, general health checkups, and managing patients with multiple ongoing health conditions at once, helping coordinate care across different specialists when needed.
Training Path
Becoming a general physician requires completing a medical degree, followed by residency training specifically in internal medicine, which provides broad training across many different organ systems and types of adult medical conditions. Many of the other medical specialties, such as cardiology, gastroenterology, and endocrinology, build on this internal medicine training with additional years of subspecialty fellowship.
When to See One
People commonly see a general physician for routine health checkups, general symptoms that haven't been clearly linked to a specific specialty, or ongoing management of common chronic conditions. General physicians often serve as the first point of medical contact, helping determine whether a specific concern can be managed directly or would benefit from referral to a specialist.
Background
Internal medicine developed as a distinct field in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as growing medical knowledge made it increasingly difficult for a single physician to master every aspect of adult medicine in equal depth. Internal medicine training was developed to provide broad, foundational expertise across the full range of adult health conditions, while more specific subspecialties, several of which developed directly out of internal medicine, allow for deeper focus on particular organ systems or types of disease.
