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Hospitals-II

Hospitals provide inpatient and outpatient services. Inpatient services provide care to patients that stay in the hospital for an extended period, ranging from days to months. Examples of inpatient services include intensive care units, hospital wards, or surgeries. Outpatient services provide care to patients who come to a hospital for a diagnostic or treatment but do not stay overnight —for example, diagnostic tests, surgical procedures, or health education.
Nurses that work in hospitals have...

Integrated Healthcare System

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Rural Health Centers
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Intraoperative Video Consultation Following Bile Duct Transection Facilitates Direct OR Transfer for Robotic Hepaticojejunostomy at Tertiary Center

Intraoperative Video Consultation Following Bile Duct Transection Facilitates Direct OR Transfer for Robotic Hepaticojejunostomy at Tertiary Center

Published on: January 9, 2026

Where have all the general internists gone?

Wayne H Bylsma¹, Gerald K Arnold, Gregory S Fortna

¹American College of Physicians, Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA. wbylsma@acponline.org

Journal of General Internal Medicine

|April 30, 2010

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

General internists are more likely to leave internal medicine (IM) careers by mid-career than IM subspecialists. This suggests general internal medicine may serve as a pathway to other medical or non-medical professions.

More Related Videos

The Goeckerman Regimen for the Treatment of Moderate to Severe Psoriasis

The Goeckerman Regimen for the Treatment of Moderate to Severe Psoriasis

Published on: July 11, 2013

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Last Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Intraoperative Video Consultation Following Bile Duct Transection Facilitates Direct OR Transfer for Robotic Hepaticojejunostomy at Tertiary Center

Intraoperative Video Consultation Following Bile Duct Transection Facilitates Direct OR Transfer for Robotic Hepaticojejunostomy at Tertiary Center

Published on: January 9, 2026

The Goeckerman Regimen for the Treatment of Moderate to Severe Psoriasis

The Goeckerman Regimen for the Treatment of Moderate to Severe Psoriasis

Published on: July 11, 2013

Area of Science:

Internal Medicine
Physician Workforce Studies
Career Mobility

Background:

A projected shortage of primary care physicians is exacerbated by declining numbers entering general internal medicine (GIM).
Practicing general internists may leave internal medicine (IM) for other careers, contributing to physician shortages.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate mid-career attrition rates among physicians certified in internal medicine.
To compare career departure rates between general internists and internal medicine subspecialists.

Main Methods:

A national mail survey was administered to internists certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine between 1990 and 1995.
Respondents reported their current practice status (in IM, another medical field, non-medical field, not working, or retired) and career satisfaction.

Main Results:

17% of general internists left IM by mid-career, compared to 4% of IM subspecialists (P < 0.001).
General internists reported lower career satisfaction (70%) than IM subspecialists (77%) (P < 0.008).
Attrition rates for general internists remained consistent across different certification cohorts and years.

Conclusions:

Approximately one in six general internists leave IM by mid-career, significantly more than IM subspecialists (one in 25).
While dissatisfaction is a known factor for physicians leaving medicine, this study suggests GIM may act as a stepping stone to careers outside of traditional IM practice.