Healthcare practitioners
General internal medicine physician
Diagnose and provide nonsurgical treatment for a wide range of diseases and injuries of internal organ systems. Provide care mainly for adults and adolescents, and are based primarily in an outpatient care setting.
Median pay
$256,560
Growth to 2035
+4%
about as fast as average
Openings a year
1,900
Time to qualify*
7 years
* From a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field.
Pay
General internal medicine physician
Getting in
- Typical entry education
- Doctoral or professional degree
- On-the-job training
- Internship/residency
- Prior experience
- None
Calculate your switch to general internal medicine physician
What the work is like
Dealing with the public
Unpleasant or angry people
Time pressure
Cost of a mistake
Freedom to make decisions
Repeating the same tasks
Time sitting
Time standing
Exposure to disease
General internal medicine physician: 59% usually work over 40 hours a week
Core tasks
- Analyze records, reports, test results, or examination information to diagnose medical condition of patient.
- Treat internal disorders, such as hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, or problems of the lung, brain, kidney, or gastrointestinal tract.
- Prescribe or administer medication, therapy, and other specialized medical care to treat or prevent illness, disease, or injury.
- Manage and treat common health problems, such as infections, influenza or pneumonia, as well as serious, chronic, and complex illnesses, in adolescents, adults, and the elderly.
- Provide and manage long-term, comprehensive medical care, including diagnosis and nonsurgical treatment of diseases, for adult patients in an office or hospital.
- Explain procedures and discuss test results or prescribed treatments with patients.
- Advise patients and community members concerning diet, activity, hygiene, and disease prevention.
- Make diagnoses when different illnesses occur together or in situations where the diagnosis may be obscure.
Also called: Doctor · Gastroenterologist · General Internal Medicine Physician · General Internist · Internal Medicine Doctor · Internal Medicine Physician (IM Physician) · Internist · Medical Doctor (MD)
Outlook and AI
General internal medicine physicians held 73,100 jobs in 2025. BLS projects 76,000 by 2035 (+4%, about as fast as average; all jobs: +3.5%).
Compare with
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- General internal medicine physician vs. Emergency medicine physician
- General internal medicine physician vs. Orthopedic surgeons, except pediatric
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- General internal medicine physician vs. Physician (other specialties)