Family practice doctor vs public health physician

The differences between family practice doctors and public health physicians 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 practice doctor and a public health physician. Additionally, a public health physician has an average salary of $199,316, which is higher than the $187,028 average annual salary of a family practice doctor.

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

Family practice doctor vs public health physician overview

	Family Practice Doctor	Public Health Physician
Yearly salary	$187,028	$199,316
Hourly rate	$89.92	$95.83
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	32,979	93,090
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

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.

What does a public health physician do?

A public health physician provides health services in communities, treating and diagnosing illnesses and injuries, referring patients to other services when necessary. Besides providing direct health care, they also spearhead various programs focusing on disease and injury prevention, help local communities in dealing with natural disasters and outbreaks, and facilitating seminars and information drives. Moreover, a public health physician may also utilize their health care expertise by participating in various studies and research programs meant to help communities.

Family practice doctor vs public health physician salary

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

	Family Practice Doctor	Public Health Physician
Average salary	$187,028	$199,316
Salary range	Between $101,000 And $345,000	Between $103,000 And $382,000
Highest paying City	-	Santa Ana, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Alameda Health System
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between family practice doctor and public health physician education

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

	Family Practice Doctor	Public Health Physician
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 31%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	Duke University	University of Virginia

Family practice doctor vs public health physician demographics

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

	Family Practice Doctor	Public Health Physician
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 34.2% Female, 65.8%	Male, 32.1% Female, 67.9%
Race ratio	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%	Black or African American, 5.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 10.1% Asian, 18.9% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between family practice doctor and public health physician duties and responsibilities

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

Public health physician example responsibilities.

Develop skills in managing diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension.
Educate employees about the prevention of hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidemia.
Develop, administer, and follow up on new to EHR competency assessments complete by new hires during EMR training.
Work and supervise patients with severe emotional problems.
Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
Scan and upload patient documentation into eClinicalWorks system.

Family practice doctor vs public health physician skills

Common family practice doctor skills

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

Common public health physician skills

Patients, 39%
Primary Care, 13%
Patient Care, 10%
Urgent Care, 7%
Family Practice, 5%
Medical Care, 4%

Family Practice Doctor vs. similar jobs

Family Practice Doctor related careers

Family Practice Doctor related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Family Practice Doctor
Family Practice Doctor vs Public Health Physician

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs