Med-Peds
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Med-Peds or "Combined Internal Medicine & Pediatrics" is a medical specialty which trains its doctors to be board certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics. After medical school, doctors typically train for four years dividing time equally between the two specialties making Med-Peds physicians able to take care of patients of all ages.
[edit] Training
Internal Medicine physicians, or internists, train three additional years after medical school leading to Board Certification in Internal Medicine. Pediatricians train three additional years after medical school to board-certify in Pediatrics. Med-Peds physicians train for four years and can be "double-boarded" for both these specialties. Since there is frequent crossover of disease and treatment between children and adults, Med-Peds training enjoys the consolidation of these two specialties into four years. The performance of Med-Peds physicians on the two national board exams is equal to their one-specialty (specific internist or pediatrician) counterparts.
Med-Peds physicians are strongly equipped for primary care. 78% of Med-Peds physicians pursue primary care as a career while the rest choose to subspecialize. While any subspecialty is available to a Med-Peds physician, popular ones include Endocrinology, Allergy/Immunology, and Infectious Disease.
[edit] Philosophy
Many people question the differences between the specialties of Med-Peds and Family Practice. The difference tend to mostly rely on the locations where physicians receive their training; however, some general differences exist. Family practitioners typically receive formal obstetrical, gynecology, and surgical training, while Med-Peds doctors do not. Family Practice residents train for three years, while Med-Peds residents train for four. This extra year is thought to make Med-Peds physicians more proficient at treating and diagnosing more complex diseases. A trend also seen is that a higher percentage of Med-Peds physicians treat inpatients (patients in the hospital) as opposed to an outpatient clinic setting.
