Acute care physician vs family practice doctor

The differences between acute care physicians and family practice doctors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an acute care physician and a family practice doctor. Additionally, an acute care physician has an average salary of $219,416, which is higher than the $187,028 average annual salary of a family practice doctor.

The top three skills for an acute care physician include patients, family practice and internal medicine. The most important skills for a family practice doctor are patients, family medicine, and urgent care.

Acute care physician vs family practice doctor overview

	Acute Care Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Yearly salary	$219,416	$187,028
Hourly rate	$105.49	$89.92
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	118,621	32,979
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	Doctoral Degree, 35%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

What does an acute care physician do?

An acute care physician is responsible for providing quality care services for the patients, diagnosing them, and administering medications. These physicians have the same duties as regular physicians, usually working for patients with a short-term illness or those patients recovered from medical conditions that require ongoing treatment and medications. Acute care physicians monitor patients' medical histories, scheduling follow-up checkups, as well as other procedures. They should have excellent communication and organizational skills, and most importantly, the knowledge of the medical industry within their expertise.

What does a family practice doctor do?

Family practice doctors provide lifelong care for a patient and their family. They offer medical attention to all family members, educates patients on disease prevention, provide health maintenance, and ensure mental and emotional needs are met. They manage basic complaints, like colds or flus, and also treat chronic illnesses, like asthma, diabetes, or degenerative conditions. They provide ongoing personalized care. Doctors must be empathetic, professional, and knowledgeable.

Acute care physician vs family practice doctor salary

Acute care physicians and family practice doctors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Acute Care Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Average salary	$219,416	$187,028
Salary range	Between $141,000 And $340,000	Between $101,000 And $345,000
Highest paying City	Grand Forks, ND	-
Highest paying state	Vermont	-
Best paying company	Freeman Health System	-
Best paying industry	Non Profits	-

Differences between acute care physician and family practice doctor education

There are a few differences between an acute care physician and a family practice doctor in terms of educational background:

	Acute Care Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 34%	Doctoral Degree, 35%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Duke University

Acute care physician vs family practice doctor demographics

Here are the differences between acute care physicians' and family practice doctors' demographics:

	Acute Care Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 40.1% Female, 59.9%	Male, 34.2% Female, 65.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 19.0% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 19.1% White, 61.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between acute care physician and family practice doctor duties and responsibilities

Acute care physician example responsibilities.

Gain experience managing patients with cardiopulmonary, post-surgical orthopedic, post-traumatic, and metabolic conditions
Pursue exposure to ICU, NICU and orthopedic surgery.
Evaluate and analyze patients' medical charts, physical and mental abilities to determine realistic rehabilitation goals for patients.
Collect patient's health information before having surgery.
Analyze procedures and diagnoses using ICD-9 & CPT codes.
Rotate in rheumatology, medicine, pediatrics, neurology.

Family practice doctor example responsibilities.

Manage conditions including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, hypothyroidism, asthma, and GERD.
Provide patients with a clinical diagnosis and provide appropriate follow-up evaluation, with referrals to clinical specialists when deem necessary.
Set up appointments.Billing and coding for emergency procedures (EKG).
Interpret diagnosis results and help in treatment of acute, chronic illnesses.
Advise patients about appropriate lifestyle modifications, preventative medicine, and recommend health screenings.
Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service

Acute care physician vs family practice doctor skills

Common acute care physician skills

Patients, 38%
Family Practice, 12%
Internal Medicine, 6%
Epic, 4%
Medical Care, 4%
ICU, 3%

Common family practice doctor skills

Patients, 34%
Family Medicine, 21%
Urgent Care, 8%
Patient Care, 7%
Internal Medicine, 5%
Outpatient Clinic, 3%

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Acute Care Physician
Acute Care Physician vs Family Practice Doctor

Updated January 8, 2025

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