What is an Internist?
Internal medicine focuses on providing complete medical care to adults. Certification requires the completion of an authorized residency program that provides specialized training in all medical subspecialties. Internists are the most well-trained physicians in general medical care. Most subspecialties require training in internal medicine prior to subspecialty certification.
Our division of Internal Medicine is a group of physicians who each practice “primary care.” That is, they serve as the main physician for those individuals age 16 and above. General Internists see individuals for reasons varying from routine check-ups, common problems such as allergies and bronchitis to complex situations involving chronic and multiple medical problems. The following questions and answers are designed to promote an understanding of our goals and major policies.
An “Internist” is an physician who has specialized in Internal Medicine and focuses on the care of adults. Many internists work in the hospital and are called “hospitalists”. They also take care of patients in the office. Internists can also specialize in certain fields, becoming for example cardiologists, gastroenterologists, etc. A Family Medicine physician can also become “hospitalists” if they choose to do so, and takes care of not only adults, but children as well. Family Medicine physicians provide “full spectrum care”. The skill level of an Internist and a Family Medicine physician is dependent on each individual physican’s training and experience and BOTH of these types of physicians are trained to take care of adults.
