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General Preventive Physician - Career Profile |
Career OverviewPreventive medicine is one of the twenty-four medical specialties currently recognized by the American Board of Specialties (ABMS). The field encompasses population-based and general clinical approaches to health care in the context of preventing outbreaks of disease.
In particular, the field is comprised of various different elements, all of which have some degree of influence on the practice of preventative medicine. The main elements are biostatistics and epidemiology, management and administration, clinical preventive medicine, and occupational and environmental medicine.
Biostatistics and epidemiology constitute the study of epidemics with reference to population information and characteristics; management and administration are studied as techniques for implementing methods to prevent or reduce the impact of epidemic outbreaks.
Preventative medicine is also significant as it is practiced in a clinical setting, including techniques for patient diagnosis, general care, and primary treatment. Occupational and environmental health theories and practices are studied as they may apply to the prevention, control, and response to epidemic outbreaks.
Board-certified preventative medical physicians hold a variety of positions. They may be chief medical officers for private corporations or directors of state or local health departments. They may be general practitioners or they may be policy makers for governmental organizations.
General preventive medicine physicians tend to confine themselves to the general practice of preventive medicine, however, their expertise easily convert to other specialist career paths for trained and qualified physicians.
Preventive medicine physicians operate in a variety of professional settings, including hospitals, health centers, private clinics, and government and health care agencies.
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Career RequirementsA general preventive medicine physician must fulfil the education and experience requirements established by federal and state government to practice medicine.
For entry into any education program to become a specialist allergy and immunology, a doctor of education degree is required from an approved school of medicine. It is often mandatory that candidates complete at least three years of graduate medical education in preventive medicine before practicing independently.
To work as a general preventive medicine physician, an individual must complete four years of medical school, a one-year internship, and three years of residency in preventive medicine.
Physicians looking to specialize in preventive medicine must receive training to understand procedures and practices for individual and public disease prevention amongst general populations.
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Job OutlookMany health care insurance plan providers are under considerable pressure from customers and physicians to increase patient access to specialists.
That said, the job outlook for general preventive medicine physicians is extremely promising: the field is a diverse one. It offers qualified medical doctors the opportunity to deal directly with patients, act as policy makers, consultants, and researchers into the application of medicine to prevent the outbreak of disease in a variety of settings.
The field allows physicians to be at the forefront of cutting-edge research in a field that combines chemistry, pharmacology, physiology, and biochemistry.
The field looks set to remain particularly lucrative, dynamic, and open to qualified and enthusiastic graduates of medical schools; particularly those with an interest in influencing public health and safety policies, which have a considerable influence in preventing the outbreak of disease.
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Career TrackA vast range of career paths are open to qualified medical doctors who have trained in preventive medicine. These paths include careers in managed care, the public health sector, occupational medicine, aerospace medicine, clinical medicine and practice, and positions of research.
General preventive medicine physicians often find employment with government agencies, education institutions, medical care programs, voluntary health agencies, and professional health organizations. Most of these settings require practitioners to develop and apply interventions to prevent epidemic outbreaks in communities to some degree.
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CompensationThe average reported salary for a typical preventive medicine physician in the United States is approximately $200,000 per year. Depending upon their qualifications and experience, most general preventive medicine physicians in the United States earn between $180,000 and $220,000.
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