What is life like for a family physician? Is there enough time for a good personal life?
Being family-and community-oriented, family physicians strive to achieve balance between personal and professional pursuits. Their work schedules vary considerably, depending on the practice setting and type of medical group. With greater numbers of women entering family medicine and the increased prevalence of two-career families, flexible models of practice, including part-time and shared arrangements, have become more common. The American Medical Association reported that family physicians worked an average of 51 hours a week in patient-related activities in 2003, a figure a little below the median number of hours for all specialties.
