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What does a medical doctor do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read
Quoted expert
Janet Williams Ph.D.
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.

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Medical doctor responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real medical doctor resumes:

  • 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.
  • Handle probate of estates, drafting wills, simple trusts and power of attorney.
  • Supervise student attorneys representing indigent clients in civil cases, including family law, probate, small claims and bankruptcy.
  • Collect and dispatch blood samples according to national malaria eradication and sputum samples for national tuberculosis control program.

Medical doctor skills and personality traits

We calculated that 30% of Medical Doctors are proficient in Patients, Patient Care, and Internal Medicine. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Compassion, and Detail oriented.

We break down the percentage of Medical Doctors that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 30%

    Examined patients, ordered laboratory test and other diagnostic procedures and followed up with acute and chronic diseases

  • Patient Care, 9%

    Organized regular office meetings for any concerns, issues, updates and suggestions for improvement of practice and patient care.

  • Internal Medicine, 7%

    Handled all internal medicine problems.

  • Primary Care, 7%

    Provided primary care and administered necessary medication.

  • Diagnosis, 4%

    Recorded patient's clinical evolution with personal diagnosis and conclusions.

  • Medical History, 4%

    Recorded patient's medical history, vital signs and test results in medical records.

Most medical doctors use their skills in "patients," "patient care," and "internal medicine" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential medical doctor responsibilities here:

Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a medical doctor to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "physicians and surgeons need to be excellent communicators." Medical doctors often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "facilitated communication between the spanish speaking clinic and the non-spanish speaking insurance companies for the patients in the largely tourist region. "

Compassion. Many medical doctor duties rely on compassion. "patients who are sick or injured may be in extreme pain or distress," so a medical doctor will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways medical doctor responsibilities rely on compassion: "created caring and compassionate relationship with patients ages 0-21 years of age. "

Detail oriented. This is an important skill for medical doctors to perform their duties. For an example of how medical doctor responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "patients must receive appropriate treatment and medications." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a medical doctor: "welcome letter, hippa compliance, insurance details, patient information)".

Dexterity. A big part of what medical doctors do relies on "dexterity." You can see how essential it is to medical doctor responsibilities because "physicians and surgeons may work with very precise and sometimes sharp tools, and mistakes can have serious consequences." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical medical doctor tasks: "direct hands on patient experience obtain patient history and information obtain blood pressure perform injections assist in minor surgery"

Leadership skills. A commonly-found skill in medical doctor job descriptions, "leadership skills" is essential to what medical doctors do. Medical doctor responsibilities rely on this skill because "physicians who work in their own practice must manage a staff of other professionals." You can also see how medical doctor duties rely on leadership skills in this resume example: "general surgery with dr. richard guttman at cleveland clinic wooster leadership"

Organizational skills. While "organizational skills" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to medical doctor responsibilities. Much of what a medical doctor does relies on this skill, seeing as "good recordkeeping and other organizational skills are critical in both medical and business settings." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of medical doctors: "track individual and organizational metrics on a daily basis to ensure quality patient care, and meet organizational goals. "

See the full list of medical doctor skills

The three companies that hire the most medical doctors are:

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Compare different medical doctors

Medical doctor vs. Family practice physician

Family practice physicians provide comprehensive medical care services to each family member. These services may include disease diagnosis and treatment, family planning, and immunizations. They typically have undergone specialty training on the various primary care disciplines, including preventive care, pediatric medicine, and OB care. They are responsible for diagnosing and treating illnesses and medical conditions, providing routine health screenings, and advising patients on lifestyle changes to prevent diseases. Family practice physicians supervise physician assistants, medical assistants, and nurses and coordinate with occupational and rehabilitation therapists on a patient's behalf.

The annual salary of family practice physicians is $23,750 higher than the average salary of medical doctors.While their salaries may differ, the common ground between medical doctors and family practice physicians are a few of the skills required in each roleacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities. In both careers, employee duties involve skills like patients, patient care, and internal medicine.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between medical doctors and family practice physician. For instance, medical doctor responsibilities require skills such as "diagnosis," "emergency medicine," "medical services," and "emergency room." Whereas a family practice physician is skilled in "urgent care," "pediatrics," "private practice," and "health system." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Family practice physicians earn the highest salaries when working in the health care industry, with an average yearly salary of $196,940. On the other hand, medical doctors are paid more in the transportation industry with an average salary of $180,010.On average, family practice physicians reach similar levels of education than medical doctors. Family practice physicians are 4.0% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 34.3% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Medical doctor vs. Family physician

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.

A career as a family physician brings a higher average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a medical doctor. In fact, family physicians salary is $33,504 higher than the salary of medical doctors per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Medical doctors and family physicians both require similar skills like "patients," "internal medicine," and "primary care" to carry out their responsibilities.

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, medical doctor responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "patient care," "family practice," "medical services," and "emergency room." Meanwhile, a family physician has duties that require skills in areas such as "family medicine," "ob," "urgent care," and "advanced life support." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Family physicians may earn a higher salary than medical doctors, but family physicians earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $198,271. On the other hand, medical doctors receive higher pay in the transportation industry, where they earn an average salary of $180,010.family physicians earn similar levels of education than medical doctors in general. They're 0.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 34.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for medical doctors in the next 3-5 years?

Janet Williams Ph.D.Janet Williams Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Professor of Biology, College of Our Lady of the Elms

PCR diagnostics are already critical, but they will become more critical as time goes on, since nearly all disorders or infections might be able to be diagnosed with PCR technology, in a matter of minutes, in the clinic.
Possibly, a little further out, will be genome sequencing to determine health risks for patients. It might even be able to prescribe lifestyle and nutrition best-practices for individuals, based on their genetics.

Medical doctor vs. Ob/gyn physician

An ob/gyn physician is a health care expert who specializes in women's health, particularly in reproductive and gynecological conditions. Aside from treating and diagnosing health issues, they also handle pregnancies and childbirth. Their responsibilities include conducting various tests and examinations, providing consultations and check-ups, studying the patients' medical histories, prescribing medication, developing care and treatment plans, and regularly monitoring the patients' conditions. Moreover, an ob/gyn physician must maintain an active communication line with staff to provide a smooth and efficient service to patients.

An average ob/gyn physician eans a higher salary compared to the average salary of medical doctors. The difference in salaries amounts to ob/gyn physicians earning a $18,456 higher average salary than medical doctors.Using the responsibilities included on medical doctors and ob/gyn physicians resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "patients," "patient care," and "internal medicine.rdquo;

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from medical doctor resumes include skills like "primary care," "diagnosis," "medical history," and "family practice," whereas an ob/gyn physician is more likely to list skills in "ob-gyn," "epic," "private practice," and "medical education. "

Ob/gyn physicians earn the best pay in the health care industry, where they command an average salary of $181,149. Medical doctors earn the highest pay from the transportation industry, with an average salary of $180,010.ob/gyn physicians typically earn similar educational levels compared to medical doctors. Specifically, they're 3.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 31.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Medical doctor vs. Staff physician

A Staff Physician oversees and directs the work of physicians and mid-level practitioners, and assists in internal quality control audits. They are also responsible for making diagnoses and prescribing specialized treatment plans.

Staff physicians typically earn higher pay than medical doctors. On average, staff physicians earn a $34,788 higher salary per year.According to resumes from medical doctors and staff physicians, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "patients," "internal medicine," and "primary care. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between medical doctors and staff physicians, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a medical doctor might have more use for skills like "patient care," "diagnosis," "medical care," and "medical treatment." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of staff physicians require skills like "rehabilitation," "veterans," "physician assistants," and "pediatrics. "

Staff physicians enjoy the best pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $196,188. For comparison, medical doctors earn the highest salary in the transportation industry.The average resume of staff physicians showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to medical doctors. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 3.1% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 18.0%.

Types of medical doctor

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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