Doctor vs resident physician

The differences between doctors and resident physicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a doctor has an average salary of $208,582, which is higher than the $164,598 average annual salary of a resident physician.

The top three skills for a doctor include patients, customer service and emergency medicine. The most important skills for a resident physician are patients, family medicine, and medical education.

Doctor vs resident physician overview

	Doctor	Resident Physician
Yearly salary	$208,582	$164,598
Hourly rate	$100.28	$79.13
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	14,571	43,775
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Doctoral Degree, 47%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

What does a doctor do?

A doctor is a medical expert who diagnoses and treats illnesses and injuries, often specializing in particular areas. Their responsibilities revolve around conducting initial interviews and examinations, studying a patient's medical history and laboratory results, providing consultations and care advice, prescribing medication, and referring patients to specialists when necessary. They must also coordinate and maintain an active communication line with nurses, administrators, and technicians for a smooth workflow. Moreover, a doctor must educate patients about their health conditions, helping them understand their situation better.

What does a resident physician do?

A Resident Physician participates in a program of graduate medical education and training in a specialized area of medicine. They work with other members of the healthcare team to provide direct medical care to patients.

Doctor vs resident physician salary

Doctors and resident physicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Doctor	Resident Physician
Average salary	$208,582	$164,598
Salary range	Between $106,000 And $408,000	Between $78,000 And $344,000
Highest paying City	Green Bay, WI	Worcester, MA
Highest paying state	Ohio	Alaska
Best paying company	Saint Luke's Health System	Baptist Health Care
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between doctor and resident physician education

There are a few differences between a doctor and a resident physician in terms of educational background:

	Doctor	Resident Physician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Doctoral Degree, 47%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	Duke University	Duke University

Doctor vs resident physician demographics

Here are the differences between doctors' and resident physicians' demographics:

	Doctor	Resident Physician
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 45.8% Female, 54.2%	Male, 53.1% Female, 46.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.5% Asian, 18.6% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 5.0% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 23.5% White, 57.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between doctor and resident physician duties and responsibilities

Doctor example responsibilities.

Manage conditions including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, hypothyroidism, asthma, and GERD.
Develop personalize treatment plans, rehabilitation plans, exercise plans, report of findings, nutritional plans and narrative reports.
Perform patient x-rays, provide MRI consultations.
Perform x-rays of the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine.
Hire, train, educate and monitor staff in HIPPA policies and procedures.
Create, update, and maintain confidential patient EHRs in compliance with all HIPAA laws and regulations.

Resident physician example responsibilities.

Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
See CTO position with Vocada above.

Doctor vs resident physician skills

Common doctor skills

Patients, 33%
Customer Service, 12%
Emergency Medicine, 5%
Surgery, 5%
DR, 4%
Cleanliness, 3%

Common resident physician skills

Patients, 24%
Family Medicine, 13%
Medical Education, 6%
Primary Care, 6%
Internal Medicine, 5%
Psychiatry, 3%

Doctor vs. similar jobs

Doctor related careers

Doctor related jobs

What similar roles do

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Doctor
Doctor vs Resident Physician

Updated January 8, 2025

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