2% of U.S. Medical Students Plan To Become Primary Care Physicians

2% of U.S. Medical Students Plan To Become Primary Care Physicians, Study Says

Two percent of medical students in a survey said they planned to go into general internal medicine, according to a study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, USA Today reports. According to the study, general internists provide a large portion of care for older patients and people with chronic illnesses, but the number of students becoming general internists is declining as the number of older U.S. residents is expected to nearly double between 2005 and 2030. The survey notes that according to one estimate, there will be a shortage of 200,000 doctors in the U.S. by 2020.

As I have recently learned, the hot new area of practice for physicians is dermatology. Think about it- you rarely have to be 'on call', there are not many dermatology emergencies, and most of your clinics are well to do and pay CASH. Makes sense right?

A first year med school graduate in the United States makes around 194,000 on average - compare that to France, where they would earn around 55,000.