Why internal medicine?

[missdoctor]

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I've been looking through my MSAR book and noticed that nearly in every medical school, internal medicine is the favored specialty choice. This is probably a dumb question, but why is this?
Thanks!🙂

 

[savant]

I've been looking through my MSAR book and noticed that nearly in every medical school, internal medicine is the favored specialty choice. This is probably a dumb question, but why is this?
Thanks!🙂

1. Lots of spots for IM (i.e. one of the largest residencies)
2. It leads to many many many fellowship subspecialties (e.g. cardio, ID, ...)

 

[lisasimpson87]

My guess would be it's because internal medicine includes tons of stuff- e.g. cardiology, endocrinology, GI stuff, lungs, kidneys, blood- really it's like over a dozen categories lumped into one.

 

[Lukkie]

I've been looking through my MSAR book and noticed that nearly in every medical school, internal medicine is the favored specialty choice. This is probably a dumb question, but why is this?
Thanks!🙂

what do you mean by "favored"?

 

[diosa428]

what do you mean by "favored"?

Probably that internal medicine has the most applicants from each school, which is true at most schools.

 

[TMP-SMX]

Most physicians are internists if you include IM subspecialists in addition to primary care/hospitalists, IM has the most residency spots, once you turn 16 the physician you go to is an internist (or family practitioner/OBGYN), many of the specialists an individual will go to for various medical problems go through an IM residency followed by a fellowship. All of the pathophysiology you learn in second year of medical school is taught by pathologists (the disease basis) and the IM subspecialists in that organ system (the clinical basis).