THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN, THE GENERAL PRACTITIONER, AND THE INTERNIST

A program to train students for practice as family physicians must satisfy certain stringent requirements. The family physician's practice is not limited to internal medicine, and his training must be much broader. It must provide experience in obstetrics, pediatrics, and psychiatry. It must prepare him to deal with emergencies in a way that will facilitate, not hamper, the subsequent work of the specialist. The program wherever instituted must have an adequate administrative framework. It should lead to certification and should offer the physician an opportunity to achieve status, honor, and recognition not only before the laity but before the eyes of his professional colleagues. This can be achieved by replacing the present 12-month internship with a 24-month program based on internal medicine but broadened to give the necessary range of experience.