Geriatric physician vs family physician

The differences between geriatric physicians and family 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 geriatric physician and a family physician. Additionally, a family physician has an average salary of $215,471, which is higher than the $210,898 average annual salary of a geriatric physician.

The top three skills for a geriatric physician include patient care, EMR and nursing home. The most important skills for a family physician are patients, family medicine, and primary care.

Geriatric physician vs family physician overview

	Geriatric Physician	Family Physician
Yearly salary	$210,898	$215,471
Hourly rate	$101.39	$103.59
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	38,498	47,352
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Doctoral Degree, 36%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

What does a geriatric physician do?

A geriatric physician is a medical doctor who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of disease ailments in elderly patients. To be precise, they are a primary care doctor specially trained in the aging process. They may be required to plan the successful transfers of patients from the hospital, educate patients on how they can stay active and healthy, and ensure patients are up to date with necessary health tips.

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.

Geriatric physician vs family physician salary

Geriatric physicians and family physicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Geriatric Physician	Family Physician
Average salary	$210,898	$215,471
Salary range	Between $104,000 And $423,000	Between $135,000 And $342,000
Highest paying City	Anderson, SC	Mount Vernon, WA
Highest paying state	North Dakota	Vermont
Best paying company	Freeman Health System	Oregon Medical Group
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between geriatric physician and family physician education

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

	Geriatric Physician	Family Physician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Doctoral Degree, 36%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	University of Virginia

Geriatric physician vs family physician demographics

Here are the differences between geriatric physicians' and family physicians' demographics:

	Geriatric Physician	Family Physician
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 21.1% Female, 78.9%	Male, 42.2% Female, 57.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 6.5% Asian, 20.4% White, 64.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	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%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between geriatric physician and family physician duties and responsibilities

Geriatric physician example responsibilities.

Initiate new treatment protocols for managing complex patients with co-morbid psychiatric and medical illnesses.
Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
Assist physician with minor office surgeries and other various procedures ECG's and immunizations.

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.

Geriatric physician vs family physician skills

Common geriatric physician skills

Patient Care, 30%
EMR, 28%
Nursing Home, 22%
Medical Care, 8%
Epic, 8%
Private Practice, 2%

Common family physician skills

Patients, 28%
Family Medicine, 26%
Primary Care, 15%
Urgent Care, 8%
EMR, 7%
Internal Medicine, 3%

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Geriatric Physician
Geriatric Physician vs Family Physician

Updated January 8, 2025

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