Anyone who has tried to visit a primary care physician lately likely knows first hand that there is a shortage of general practice physicians in the United States. Primary care physicians provide half of the health care obtained in the outpatient setting, but over the past several decades, career interest in internal medicine, particularly general internal medicine — the specialty primarily responsible for providing care to adults — has declined among medical students.

A recent issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association published a study examining the factors that influence medical students’ choices in choosing a medical specialty, particularly internal medicine. Read more →

It is that time of the year again when medical students start appearing on the wards. If you are a third year student you are now likely starting your clinical rotations. If you are a fourth year student you are probably embarking on away rotations to the specialty of your choice. Every physician has fond memories of being a medical student — the torture from residents and attendings, the constant pimping, the feeling of being a useless fly on the wall, the awkwardness of trying to fit in. Read more →

I frequently find myself having to explain the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) to the public, and sadly to a lot of healthcare professionals as well. If a cardiologist is a “heart doctor,” a pulmonologist is a “lung doctor,” and an orthopedic surgeon is a “bone doctor,” then what do you call a physiatrist? I would call us “function doctors.” While that title is not as flashy as the other ones, it is equally important. The old adage is that nobody knows what a physiatrist does until they need one. Read more →