In the medical profession, a general practitioner (GP) or family physician is a doctor who is a consultant in general practice. GPs have distinct expertise and experience in providing whole person medical care whilst managing the complexity, uncertainty and risk associated with the continuous care they provide. GPs work at the heart of their communities, striving to provide comprehensive and equitable care for everyone, taking into account their health care needs, stage of life and background. GPs work in, connect with and lead multidisciplinary teams that care for people and their families, respecting the context in which they live, aiming to ensure all of their physical and mental health needs are met. They are trained to treat patients to levels of complexity that vary between countries. The term "primary care physician" is more usually used in the US.
Doctor of Medicine is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. This generally arose because many in 18th-century medical professions trained in Scotland, which used the M.D. degree nomenclature. In England, however, Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S.) was used and eventually in the 19th century became the standard in Scotland too. Thus, in the United Kingdom, Ireland and other countries, the M.D. is a research doctorate, honorary doctorate or applied clinical degree restricted to those who already hold a professional degree (Bachelor's/Master's/Doctoral) in medicine. In those countries, the equivalent professional degree to the North American, and some others' usage of M.D. is still typically titled Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery.
A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, Master of Medicine, Doctor of Medicine (MD), or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO). Many medical schools offer additional degrees, such as a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), master's degree (MSc) or other post-secondary education.
A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradition. Despite the historical distinction in nomenclature, these degrees are typically combined and conferred together. This degree is usually awarded as an undergraduate degree, but it can also be awarded at graduate-level medical institutions. The typical duration for completion is five to six years.
Residency or postgraduate training is a stage of graduate medical education. It refers to a qualified physician, veterinarian, dentist, podiatrist (DPM) or pharmacist (PharmD) who practices medicine, veterinary medicine, dentistry, podiatry, or clinical pharmacy, respectively, usually in a hospital or clinic, under the direct or indirect supervision of a senior medical clinician registered in that specialty such as an attending physician or consultant. In many jurisdictions, successful completion of such training is a requirement in order to obtain an unrestricted license to practice medicine, and in particular a license to practice a chosen specialty. In the meantime, they practice "on" the license of their supervising physician. An individual engaged in such training may be referred to as a resident, registrar or trainee depending on the jurisdiction. Residency training may be followed by fellowship or sub-specialty training. Whereas medical school teaches physicians a broad range of medical knowledge, basic clinical skills, and supervised experience practicing medicine in a variety of fields, medical residency gives in-depth training within a specific branch of medicine.
A number of professional degrees in dentistry are offered by dental schools in various countries around the world.
In the United Kingdom, junior doctors are qualified medical practitioners working whilst engaged in postgraduate training. The period of being a junior doctor starts when they qualify as a medical practitioner following graduation with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree and start the UK Foundation Programme. It culminates in a post as a consultant, a general practitioner (GP), or becoming a SAS Doctor, such as a specialty doctor or Specialist post.
A senior house officer (SHO) is a non-consultant hospital doctor in the Republic of Ireland and many Commonwealth countries. SHOs usually have a minimum of 1 year post medical school training. SHOs are supervised in their work by consultants and registrars. In training posts these registrars and consultants oversee training and are usually their designated clinical supervisors.
Medical education in Australia includes the educational activities involved in the initial and ongoing training of Medical Practitioners. In Australia, medical education begins in Medical School; upon graduation it is followed by a period of pre-vocational training including Internship and Residency; thereafter, enrolment into a specialist-vocational training program as a Registrar eventually leads to fellowship qualification and recognition as a fully qualified Specialist Medical Practitioner. Medical education in Australia is facilitated by Medical Schools and the Medical Specialty Colleges, and is regulated by the Australian Medical Council (AMC) and Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) of which includes the Medical Board of Australia where medical practitioners are registered nationally.
Pre-registration house officer (PRHO), commonly refrerred to as house officer and less commonly as houseman, is a former official term for a grade of junior doctor that was, until 2005, the only job open to medical graduates in the United Kingdom who had just passed their final examinations at medical school and had received their medical degrees. The term "house officer" is still used to refer to foundation doctors.
A medicalintern is a physician in training who has completed medical school and has a medical degree, but does not yet have a license to practice medicine unsupervised. Medical education generally ends with a period of practical training similar to internship, but the way the overall program of academic and practical medical training is structured differs depending upon the country, as does the terminology used.
A Medical Laboratory Scientist (MLS) or Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) or Medical Technologist (MT) performs diagnostic testing of blood and body fluids in clinical laboratories. The scope of a medical laboratory scientist's work begins with the receipt of patient or client specimens and terminates with the delivery of test results to physicians and other healthcare providers. The utility of clinical diagnostic testing relies squarely on the validity of test methodology. To this end, much of the work done by medical laboratory scientists involves ensuring specimen quality, interpreting test results, data-logging, testing control products, performing calibration, maintenance, validation, and troubleshooting of instrumentation as well as performing statistical analyses to verify the accuracy and repeatability of testing. Medical laboratory scientists may also assist healthcare providers with test selection and specimen collection and are responsible for prompt verbal delivery of critical lab results. Medical Laboratory Scientists in healthcare settings also play an important role in clinical diagnosis. An estimated 70% of medical decisions are based on laboratory test results and MLS contributions affect 95% of a health system's costs.
In the United Kingdom, Ireland, and parts of the Commonwealth, consultant is the title of a senior hospital-based physician or surgeon who has completed all of their specialist training and been placed on the specialist register in their chosen speciality. Their role is entirely distinct from that of a general practitioner.
A Senior Registrar was a grade of doctor in the United Kingdom or Ireland before being superseded during reforms in the 1990s. The senior registrar post still exists in Australia, whilst in the US, the title of “Senior Registrar” might be applied to a Senior or Chief Resident in Surgery.
Modern medical education in Hong Kong started with the founding of the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese in 1887. Currently, six institutes of higher education are engaged in the training of medical practitioners in Hong Kong.
A foundation doctor is a grade of medical practitioner in the United Kingdom undertaking the Foundation Programme, a two-year, general postgraduate medical training programme which forms the bridge between medical school and specialist/general practice training. Doctors in the first year of the programme are known as Foundation Year 1 (FY1) doctors, and those in the second year are known as Foundation Year 2 (FY2) doctors. Being a foundation doctor is compulsory for all newly qualified medical practitioners in the UK starting from 2005 onwards. The grade of foundation doctor has replaced the traditional grades of pre-registration house officer and senior house officer.
A specialty registrar (StR), previously known as and still commonly referred to as a specialist registrar (SpR), is a doctor, public health practitioner or dentist who is working as part of a specialty training programme in the UK. This is known as a training grade as these doctors are supervised to an extent, as part of a structured training experience that leads to being able to undertake independent practice in a hospital specialty or working as a general practitioner.
A clinical officer (CO) is a gazetted officer who is qualified and licensed to practice medicine.
A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical center that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located with medical schools.
Medical education in Wales is the education of medical students and qualified medical doctors in Wales.
