An internal medicine doctor is basically a doctor who is dedicated to
preventative care, diagnoses, and treatment for disease that effect
adults. Internists differ from other doctors is several aspects, and
they are sometimes referred to as the doctors doctor because they
often team up or act as consultants for other specialized physicians to
help diagnose difficult cases. Sometimes called internists, these
professionals, simply put are internal medicine doctors for adults.
Though he may practice family or general medicine, he differs from
family or general practitioners in that they may also be trained in
surgery, pediatrics, or obstetrics whereas an internist is focused on
whole life whole person care involving prevention, diagnosis and
treatment of most any problem a patient can have. They work in several
environments including offices, clinics, hospitals, and nursing homes.
These doctors can have what is known as a sub-specialty which is usually
obtained through a fellowship that involves two to three years of
training in addition to the already involved degree plan of medical
school, internship, and residency, and internist training. There are
many sub-specialties, but some included possibilities for those who
practice this type of medicine are cardiology, gastroenterology,
hematology which involves the study and focus of the blood, infectious
disease, geriatrics, adolescent medicine, immunology, endocrinology,
nephrology or the study of kidney disease, oncology which is the branch
of medicine that deals with tumors or cancer, pulmonology which focuses
on the lungs and respiratory tract, rheumatology which is dedicated to
the diagnosis and therapy of muscles joints, and bones, and sports
medicine. A cardiologist, for example, is an internist who focuses on
the care and prevention of heart disease; he is not a heart surgeon,
though the two physicians may have a close professional relationship.
An internal medicine doctor may work as a family practitioner, though he
will not take young patients, but his forte is to combine the science
of medicine with patient care. If a patient brings an issue to him that
necessitates treatment from a specialist, he will continue to work with
the patient as the primary and diagnostic physician and as the team and
strategy coordinator.
Basic things that the job includes are advisement concerning diet,
hygiene, and disease prevention including all the collections and
maintenance of records that this entails. An internal medicine doctor
also treats common health problems making diagnoses and is responsible
for the explanation of services and for the referral process when other
specialized services are needed. Internists are known for providing long
term and comprehensive non-surgical treatment of diseases and health
care for adults.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
An internal medicine doctor is something that we all need to manage our
overall healthcare and refer us to specialists. For information on how
to find a good one please see: http://www.doctorreviewsonline.com/