Internist vs physician

The differences between internists and physicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an internist, becoming a physician takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a physician has an average salary of $238,887, which is higher than the $223,415 average annual salary of an internist.

The top three skills for an internist include patients, primary care and EMR. The most important skills for a physician are patients, surgery, and patient care.

Internist vs physician overview

	Internist	Physician
Yearly salary	$223,415	$238,887
Hourly rate	$107.41	$114.85
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	31,659	46,489
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	6	4

What does an internist do?

An internist is a physician of internal medicine whose primary duty is to diagnose and treat different illnesses and injuries. Their responsibilities revolve around conducting initial assessment and examination, reviewing medical records and histories, providing consultations, prescribing medicines, and coordinating with different health care workers to ensure optimal care and service to patients. Moreover, it is essential to discuss and explain conditions to patients or their families, monitor their condition, provide health care advice, and refer them to any specialists or support services as needed.

What does a physician do?

Physicians' general responsibility is to check, diagnose, and treat a patient's condition to improve their overall wellness. A physician could be General Practitioners or Specialist Physicians, wherein General Practitioners are physicians who provide regular checkups for patients depending on their needs and refer them to a Specialist Physicians who are more skilled in a particular field of expertise for a thorough diagnosis. Physicians monitor a patient's medical history and ensure follow-up checkups to observe if the condition of a patient is changing over time. A physician may refer a patient to other health professionals for further examination as needed.

Internist vs physician salary

Internists and physicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Internist	Physician
Average salary	$223,415	$238,887
Salary range	Between $120,000 And $415,000	Between $128,000 And $442,000
Highest paying City	Springfield, OH	Cleveland, TN
Highest paying state	Alaska	Wisconsin
Best paying company	Central Ohio Primary Care	Yuma Regional Medical Center
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between internist and physician education

There are a few differences between an internist and a physician in terms of educational background:

	Internist	Physician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	University of Virginia	Duke University

Internist vs physician demographics

Here are the differences between internists' and physicians' demographics:

	Internist	Physician
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 37.3% Female, 62.7%	Male, 39.0% Female, 61.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 10.0% Asian, 19.0% White, 61.0% 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, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between internist and physician duties and responsibilities

Internist example responsibilities.

Train and manage new interns/ volunteers assisting with the evidence-based hypertension management program.
Implement EMR solely in a huge practice.
Evaluate health education needs of patients and provide necessary training and instruction.
Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
Perform uncomplicated surgical extractions, bone grafting and suturing as needed independently.
Provide physiotherapy, rehabilitation and chiropractic treatment for various conditions and injuries.

Physician example responsibilities.

Manage catheters and dress wounds.
Maintain ACLS and BLS certifications.
Treat complicated oncology cases in ICU and emergency.
Schedule new, follow-up and diagnostic testing for cardiology patients.
Attend radiation oncology clinic for new patients beginning treatment as well as follow-ups for returning patients.
Schedule tests and procedures (including radiology, cardiology, and respiratory) utilizing the hospital and clinic computer systems.

Internist vs physician skills

Common internist skills

Patients, 30%
Primary Care, 13%
EMR, 7%
Critical Care, 6%
Private Practice, 6%
Rehabilitation, 5%

Common physician skills

Patients, 22%
Surgery, 8%
Patient Care, 7%
Internal Medicine, 6%
Primary Care, 6%
EMR, 6%

Internist vs. similar jobs

Internist related careers

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Internist vs Physician

Updated January 8, 2025

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