Family Medicine Physicians: Career Profile
Diagnose, treat, and provide preventive care to individuals and families across the lifespan. May refer patients to specialists when needed for further diagnosis or treatment.
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What Do Family Medicine Physicians Perform?
Typical responsibilities of family medicine physicians include:
- Prescribe or administer treatment, therapy, medication, vaccination, and other specialized medical care to treat or prevent illness, disease, or injury.
- Order, perform, and interpret tests and analyze records, reports, and examination information to diagnose patients' condition.
- Collect, record, and maintain patient information, such as medical history, reports, or examination results.
- Monitor patients' conditions and progress and reevaluate treatments as necessary.
- Explain procedures and discuss test results or prescribed treatments with patients.
- Advise patients and community members concerning diet, activity, hygiene, and disease prevention.
- Direct and coordinate activities of nurses, students, assistants, specialists, therapists, and other medical staff.
- Refer patients to medical specialists or other practitioners when necessary.
Skills and Knowledge
Effective family medicine physicians combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Most Important Skills
These are the skills most central to this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Knowledge Areas
Other Family Medicine Physicians Job Titles
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- Board Certified Family Physician
- DO Physician (Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Physician)
- Doctor
- Family Medicine PCP (Family Medicine Primary Care Physician)
- Family Medicine Physician
- Family Physician
- Family Practice Medical Doctor (FP MD)
- Family Practice Physician (FP Physician)
How Many Family Medicine Physicians Are There?
There are about 1,238,081 family medicine physicians working in the United States today. Employment is projected to grow by +3.8% over the projection horizon.
Salary for Family Medicine Physicians
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $95,401 |
| Hourly median | $45.87 |
| 10th percentile | $65,569 |
| 25th percentile | $80,485 |
| 75th percentile | $110,316 |
| 90th percentile | $125,232 |
Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| New Hampshire | $238,370 |
| Kansas | $237,200 |
| South Carolina | $236,950 |
| Delaware | $235,960 |
| Vermont | $233,160 |
| Mississippi | $231,580 |
| Tennessee | $229,050 |
| Texas | $228,560 |
| North Carolina | $227,310 |
| Hawaii | $222,790 |
| Ohio | $220,600 |
| Maine | $220,590 |
| Florida | $220,500 |
| Illinois | $220,260 |
| Michigan | $219,990 |
| Virginia | $219,500 |
| Oklahoma | $219,220 |
| South Dakota | $217,460 |
| Missouri | $216,990 |
| Rhode Island | $216,220 |
| New York | $214,790 |
| District of Columbia | $212,830 |
| Alabama | $198,930 |
| Connecticut | $198,160 |
| Puerto Rico | $117,220 |
| Arkansas | $62,360 |
Pay by U.S. Region
Pay for family medicine physicians differ across the country. Top regions by median wage:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast | $162,926 | 22.8% | 1.00 |
| Great Lakes | $155,519 | 10.1% | 0.92 |
| Southwest | $151,762 | 12.8% | 1.32 |
| Other U.S. Territories | $117,220 | 0.7% | 1.16 |
| New England | $91,044 | 5.6% | 1.25 |
| Plains States | $90,160 | 7.2% | 1.18 |
| Middle Atlantic | $51,174 | 15.1% | 1.36 |
Where the Jobs Cluster
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester-Nashua, NH | NH | $238,630 | 200 |
| New Haven, CT | CT | $236,970 | 110 |
| Midland, TX | TX | $236,400 | 40 |
| Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | GA | $236,270 | 150 |
| Johnson City, TN | TN | $236,200 | 70 |
| Birmingham, AL | AL | $236,160 | |
| Clarksville, TN-KY | TN | $236,090 | 60 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC | SC | $235,350 | 110 |
Industry Breakdown
The largest employers of family medicine physicians are found across these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 102,520 | n/a |
| Educational Services | 1,490 | $145,350 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 1,290 | $223,870 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 380 | $209,850 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 250 | n/a |
| Manufacturing | 30 | n/a |
Family Medicine Physicians work in the following industries:
Tech Stack
- Medical software: eClinicalWorks EHR software (hot technology)
- Medical software: Epic Systems (hot technology)
- Medical software: MEDITECH software (hot technology)
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
Work Environment
The work environment for family medicine physicians tends to involve the following characteristics:
- Contact With Others
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
- Frequency of Decision Making
- Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results
- Freedom to Make Decisions
How to Become Family Medicine Physicians
This career aligns with Extensive Preparation Needed (Job Zone 5), signaling the level of preparation typically expected.
Other Careers to Consider
Similar Occupations
- Physician Assistants (Primary-Long)
- Registered Nurses (Supplemental)
- Advanced Practice Psychiatric Nurses (Primary-Long)
- Clinical Nurse Specialists (Supplemental)
- Nurse Midwives (Supplemental)
- Nurse Practitioners (Supplemental)
- Anesthesiologists (Supplemental)
- Cardiologists (Primary-Long)
Degree Programs
Aspiring family medicine physicians often complete programs in:
7 programs across 2 majors
Health Professions and Related Programs
2 programs across 1 majors
Sources
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 29-1215.00 (Family Medicine Physicians).
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