Medical doctor vs acute care physician

The differences between medical doctors and acute care 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 medical doctor and an acute care physician. Additionally, an acute care physician has an average salary of $219,416, which is higher than the $181,967 average annual salary of a medical doctor.

The top three skills for a medical doctor include patients, patient care and internal medicine. The most important skills for an acute care physician are patients, family practice, and internal medicine.

Medical doctor vs acute care physician overview

	Medical Doctor	Acute Care Physician
Yearly salary	$181,967	$219,416
Hourly rate	$87.48	$105.49
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	60,642	118,621
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

What does a medical doctor do?

A Medical Doctor, also known as a physician, is a healthcare professional who diagnoses and treats patients from injuries and illnesses. As a Medical Doctor, your day-to-day duties will typically include assessing a patient's symptoms, prescribing and administering treatment to patients, and providing follow-up medical care to patients. You will be responsible for interpreting patients' laboratory results and referring them to other providers when needed. Also, you will need to work closely with other healthcare professionals and promote health education.

What does an acute care physician do?

An acute care physician is responsible for providing quality care services for the patients, diagnosing them, and administering medications. These physicians have the same duties as regular physicians, usually working for patients with a short-term illness or those patients recovered from medical conditions that require ongoing treatment and medications. Acute care physicians monitor patients' medical histories, scheduling follow-up checkups, as well as other procedures. They should have excellent communication and organizational skills, and most importantly, the knowledge of the medical industry within their expertise.

Medical doctor vs acute care physician salary

Medical doctors and acute care physicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Doctor	Acute Care Physician
Average salary	$181,967	$219,416
Salary range	Between $95,000 And $347,000	Between $141,000 And $340,000
Highest paying City	Brownsville, TX	Grand Forks, ND
Highest paying state	New Jersey	Vermont
Best paying company	Pacific Medical Centers	Freeman Health System
Best paying industry	Transportation	Non Profits

Differences between medical doctor and acute care physician education

There are a few differences between a medical doctor and an acute care physician in terms of educational background:

	Medical Doctor	Acute Care Physician
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	Duke University	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Medical doctor vs acute care physician demographics

Here are the differences between medical doctors' and acute care physicians' demographics:

	Medical Doctor	Acute Care Physician
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1%	Male, 40.1% Female, 59.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 19.0% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 19.0% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between medical doctor and acute care physician duties and responsibilities

Medical doctor example responsibilities.

Partner with team to achieve overall well-being patients and contribute to successful department research accreditation.
Perform selection and interpretation of labs including EKG readings, diagnostic imaging, blood work, and urinalyses.
Batch to clearing house, upload files from insurance, data entry answer phones, collect payments over phone, EMR.
Examine patients, order laboratory test and other diagnostic procedures and follow up with acute and chronic diseases
Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
Perform and interpret ECG test.

Acute care physician example responsibilities.

Gain experience managing patients with cardiopulmonary, post-surgical orthopedic, post-traumatic, and metabolic conditions
Pursue exposure to ICU, NICU and orthopedic surgery.
Evaluate and analyze patients' medical charts, physical and mental abilities to determine realistic rehabilitation goals for patients.
Collect patient's health information before having surgery.
Analyze procedures and diagnoses using ICD-9 & CPT codes.
Rotate in rheumatology, medicine, pediatrics, neurology.

Medical doctor vs acute care physician skills

Common medical doctor skills

Patients, 30%
Patient Care, 9%
Internal Medicine, 7%
Primary Care, 7%
Diagnosis, 4%
Medical History, 4%

Common acute care physician skills

Patients, 38%
Family Practice, 12%
Internal Medicine, 6%
Epic, 4%
Medical Care, 4%
ICU, 3%

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Medical Doctor vs Acute Care Physician

Updated January 8, 2025

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