Internal medicine is the backbone of the medical world. Without internal medicine physicians, there would not be a team of people to be able to delegate work and determine who is critically ill. It continues to be one of the promising fields of medicine, as it is the entrance way to other specialties, including gastroenterology and cardiology. Depending on the day, an internal medicine physician may be caring for a person’s esophageal candidiasis, their skin warts, their diabetes, or their hypertension, making it a diverse and satisfying profession. With an internal medicine physician’s range of expertise and ability to manage a healthcare team, it is no doubt an additional internal medicine physician can benefit any hospital or practice.  

Despite all this interest in internal medicine and the opportunities, many young trainees are seeking out alternative paths rather than full time practice of medicine. Many people who enter the field of internal medicine are looking to branch into other areas, including telemedicine and healthcare administration.  It is difficult to recruit the right talent for a practice or hospital because each physician has a different way of viewing their career and what their expectations are from their career. 

The bright news is that internal medicine residency program directors are struggling with having too many applications.  Many are wanting to become internal medicine physicians because of the diverse career paths available. When hiring an internal medicine physician, there are many nuances based on the physician’s personality and their fit into the community he or she is serving.  An internal medicine physician in an urban versus rural setting may differ in terms of their required skillsets.