And does education for primary care doctors differ from that of research doctors?
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August 30th, 2010 @3:29 am
A primary care doctor is the ‘first’ doctor most patients see and will provide physical exams and evaluate special needs. The primary care doctor will refer a patient to specialists as the need arises. Many medical health plans require patients to identify their primary care physician who must approve medications, procedures (X-rays, MRIs, etc.) or referrals to specialists in order to receive full benefits. Although many research doctors have PhDs the director of research may well be a medical doctor.
Primary care doctors are MDs who provide general care to patients in an office or clinic setting.
Research doctors usually have a PhD, they are not medical doctors and do not go to medical school. Some medical doctors obtain a PhD in addition to a medical degree. In this case they go to a medical school program that combines both an MD and PhD degree.