Medical officer vs general practitioner

The differences between medical officers and general practitioners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a medical officer, becoming a general practitioner takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a general practitioner has an average salary of $172,831, which is higher than the $90,615 average annual salary of a medical officer.

The top three skills for a medical officer include patients, public health and infectious disease. The most important skills for a general practitioner are patients, diagnosis, and internal medicine.

Medical officer vs general practitioner overview

	Medical Officer	General Practitioner
Yearly salary	$90,615	$172,831
Hourly rate	$43.56	$83.09
Growth rate	28%	7%
Number of jobs	103,222	64,698
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Doctoral Degree, 50%
Average age	47	48
Years of experience	6	4

What does a medical officer do?

A Medical Officer delivers health and first-aid provisions for patients as well as prepares and maintains the paper and electronic health care records of clients. They ensure that all related equipment and supplies are suitably maintained at all times.

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.

Medical officer vs general practitioner salary

Medical officers and general practitioners have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Officer	General Practitioner
Average salary	$90,615	$172,831
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $236,000	Between $85,000 And $347,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	Oklahoma City, OK
Highest paying state	Maine	Mississippi
Best paying company	FHCB Health System	Altru Health System
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between medical officer and general practitioner education

There are a few differences between a medical officer and a general practitioner in terms of educational background:

	Medical Officer	General Practitioner
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Doctoral Degree, 50%
Most common major	Medicine	Medicine
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Duke University

Medical officer vs general practitioner demographics

Here are the differences between medical officers' and general practitioners' demographics:

	Medical Officer	General Practitioner
Average age	47	48
Gender ratio	Male, 60.9% Female, 39.1%	Male, 60.9% Female, 39.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 8.0% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	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	12%	13%

Differences between medical officer and general practitioner duties and responsibilities

Medical officer example responsibilities.

Lead efforts to support and continually improve the coordination and delivery of oncology services using evidence base guidelines.
Perform emergency and elective surgery for both obstetrics and gynecology cases.
Provide guidance to industry, stakeholders, and other experts within FDA on clinical issues and clinical trial designs.
Enter and scan patient history, current medical conditions, medications, immunizations and labs into the novel EHR system.
Facilitate performance improvement initiatives for CME credit.
Provide physicians with assistance during surgery or complicate medical procedures.

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.

Medical officer vs general practitioner skills

Common medical officer skills

Patients, 20%
Public Health, 17%
Infectious Disease, 8%
Diagnosis, 7%
Direct Patient Care, 4%
Internal Medicine, 4%

Common general practitioner skills

Patients, 32%
Diagnosis, 7%
Internal Medicine, 6%
Outpatient Clinic, 5%
Emergency Room, 5%
Oral Surgery, 4%

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Medical Officer vs General Practitioner

Updated January 8, 2025

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