Is going through a residency necessary for family practice?

[ortho24]

If you were going into family medicine, would you have to complete a residency? Exactly who has to complete a residency, besides specialty fields?

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[MystA RavE]

Everybody does residency. Family medicine is just one of the least competitive.

 

[ortho24]

I know that the first year is an internship, but do you have to complete the other three years of residency?

 

[signomi]

Technically, you can practice after an internship only in most states...but your job choices will suck. Trust me, insurance companies do not want to insure a doc who hasn't completed a residency and become board certified or at least board eligible.

I have a friend doing urgent care (the only thing he can really) for $55 an hour. They move to NPs/PAs like most other places? He's hosed.

Do the three year residency...the world is then your oyster and you can pick and choose jobs at your leisure.

 

[Krazykritter]

You can only practice as a GP w/out any residency training in most states & those days are going to be gone soon.

To answer the OP's question...Residency is 100% necessary. Residency is the time when you learn the most. You have the steepest learning curve b/c guess what, YOU are in charge of the patient care. Until your intern & other PGY years, you always have someone else calling the shots...whole different ball game...

 

[DropkickMurphy]

Family medicine is just one of the least competitive

Try basically non-competitive unless you're simply going based off of location (like Hawaii or something). I would figure that is the only way such a program could really get people to line up and beg to be let in......instead of grand rounds, you have the daily happy hour tiki party.

 

[Critical Mass]

Pretty much yeah. Board certification is pretty important.

In terms of competativeness, I suppose that the gentlest way to put it is that there are many more slots available than there are US applicants.

My school places more residents in gas than family med. 🙁