Family and General Practitioners
On the Job
Family and General Practitioners work with patients to diagnose, treat, and prevent disease. They treat patients of all ages, with all types of health concerns. They may refer patients to specialists when their health conditions need further diagnosis or treatment.
Typical Work Tasks
People who work in this career often:
- Prepare official health documents or records.
- Record patient medical histories.
- Collect medical information from patients, family members, or other medical professionals.
- Conduct research to increase knowledge about medical issues.
- Care for women during pregnancy and childbirth.
- Immunize patients.
- Operate on patients to treat conditions.
- Refer patients to other healthcare practitioners or health resources.
- Collaborate with healthcare professionals to plan or provide treatment.
- Advise communities or institutions regarding health or safety issues.
Typical Working Conditions
- Exposure to disease or infections.
- Freedom to make decisions without supervision.
- Having telephone conversations.
- The importance of being accurate or exact.
- Working with a group or team.
- Close physical proximity with other people.
- Meeting strict deadlines.
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people.
- Responsibility for outcomes and results.
This page includes information from the O*NET 24.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Source: You can learn about our data sources in the About Us section.