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General practitioner vs attending physician

The differences between general practitioners and attending 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 general practitioner and an attending physician. Additionally, an attending physician has an average salary of $200,702, which is higher than the $172,831 average annual salary of a general practitioner.

The top three skills for a general practitioner include patients, diagnosis and internal medicine. The most important skills for an attending physician are patients, primary care, and surgery.

General practitioner vs attending physician overview

General PractitionerAttending Physician
Yearly salary$172,831$200,702
Hourly rate$83.09$96.49
Growth rate7%7%
Number of jobs64,69853,195
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 33%
Average age4848
Years of experience44

What does a general practitioner do?

A General Practitioner provides primary and continuing medical care for patients within their community. They are responsible for diagnosing patients, checking patients results, and providing treatment as required.

What does an attending physician do?

An Attending Physician typically supervises fellows, residents, medical students, and other practitioners. They are responsible for supervising each patient every day, reviewing treatment plans with residents, and supervising patient management documents.

General practitioner vs attending physician salary

General practitioners and attending physicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

General PractitionerAttending Physician
Average salary$172,831$200,702
Salary rangeBetween $85,000 And $347,000Between $125,000 And $321,000
Highest paying CityOklahoma City, OKMiami, FL
Highest paying stateMississippiNew Jersey
Best paying companyAltru Health SystemCommunity Health Systems
Best paying industryHealth CareHealth Care

Differences between general practitioner and attending physician education

There are a few differences between a general practitioner and an attending physician in terms of educational background:

General PractitionerAttending Physician
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 50%Bachelor's Degree, 33%
Most common majorMedicineMedicine
Most common collegeDuke UniversityUniversity of Michigan - Ann Arbor

General practitioner vs attending physician demographics

Here are the differences between general practitioners' and attending physicians' demographics:

General PractitionerAttending Physician
Average age4848
Gender ratioMale, 60.9% Female, 39.1%Male, 36.5% Female, 63.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.7% Asian, 19.1% White, 61.3% 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 Percentage13%13%

Differences between general practitioner and attending physician duties and responsibilities

General practitioner example responsibilities.

  • Shadow and note specific medical cases as well as participated in patient diagnosis and treatment plan discussions
  • Evaluate a variety of medical conditions and afflictions, including making comprehensive diagnosis and specifying treatment plans.
  • Serve as initial contact to hospital patients; conduct thorough patient assessments and coordinate referrals to appropriate physicians base on findings
  • Assist in major elective and emergency surgeries such as appendectomies, exploratory laparotomy, thyroid surgery, hysterectomy and cesarean operations.
  • Collect and dispatch blood samples according to national malaria eradication and sputum samples for national tuberculosis control program.

Attending physician example responsibilities.

  • Manage neurological cancer research protocols: collected/organize data, assure compliance with protocol guidelines, manage study database and enroll patients.
  • Prepare patients for ultrasound guide injections and aspirations which includes draping patients, prepping medications and preparing sterile instruments.
  • Manage neurological cancer research protocols: collected/organize data, assure compliance with protocol guidelines, manage study database and enroll patients.
  • Monitor and manage patient medical records in compliance with HIPPA.

General practitioner vs attending physician skills

Common general practitioner skills
  • Patients, 32%
  • Diagnosis, 7%
  • Internal Medicine, 6%
  • Outpatient Clinic, 5%
  • Emergency Room, 5%
  • Oral Surgery, 4%
Common attending physician skills
  • Patients, 35%
  • Primary Care, 8%
  • Surgery, 5%
  • Internal Medicine, 5%
  • BLS, 4%
  • Rehabilitation, 3%

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