Family physician vs family practice doctor

The differences between family 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 a family physician and a family practice doctor. Additionally, a family physician has an average salary of $215,471, which is higher than the $187,028 average annual salary of a family practice doctor.

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

Family physician vs family practice doctor overview

	Family Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Yearly salary	$215,471	$187,028
Hourly rate	$103.59	$89.92
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	47,352	32,979
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 36%	Doctoral Degree, 35%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

What does a family physician do?

A family physician specializes in providing health care services to an entire family, regardless of age, health condition, or gender. Aside from conducting regular check-ups and consultations, they serve as a family's primary contact when health problems occur. Among their responsibilities include maintaining a family's health records, helping families navigate through the healthcare system, coordinating with insurance companies, and referring them to other specialists when necessary. Moreover, a family physician builds positive relationships with clients, helping them feel comfortable every step of the way.

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.

Family physician vs family practice doctor salary

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

	Family Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Average salary	$215,471	$187,028
Salary range	Between $135,000 And $342,000	Between $101,000 And $345,000
Highest paying City	Mount Vernon, WA	-
Highest paying state	Vermont	-
Best paying company	Oregon Medical Group	-
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between family physician and family practice doctor education

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

	Family Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 36%	Doctoral Degree, 35%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	University of Virginia	Duke University

Family physician vs family practice doctor demographics

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

	Family Physician	Family Practice Doctor
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 42.2% Female, 57.8%	Male, 34.2% Female, 65.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.7% Asian, 19.1% White, 61.4% 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 family physician and family practice doctor duties and responsibilities

Family physician example responsibilities.

Manage complicated and often difficult to control chronic medical conditions in patients with limit resources.
Examine patients, using medical instruments and equipment; elicit and record information about patient's medical history.
Perform hematology, chemistry and immunology screen test to provide immediate results for diagnosis.
Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
Case, endotracheal intubation and artificial mechanical ventilation to which it require, bladder catheterizations rectal and nasogastric.

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

Family physician vs family practice doctor skills

Common family physician skills

Patients, 28%
Family Medicine, 26%
Primary Care, 15%
Urgent Care, 8%
EMR, 7%
Internal Medicine, 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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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Family Physician
Family Physician vs Family Practice Doctor

Updated January 8, 2025

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