What steps must I take to become a family physician?
First, get a bachelor’s degree.
Before applying to medical school, aspiring family doctors must get a bachelor’s degree. As an undergraduate, students are not required to follow a certain major, but they must finish family doctor courses in Malaysia, which include physics, biology, chemistry, English, and math. Acceptance to medical school is extremely hard, and a strong undergraduate GPA is required.
Getting work experience in a doctor’s office, medical facility, or nursing home while in college is a smart choice. According to the Family Medicine Interest Group, job experience in a medical setting is becoming a more essential element in medical school admissions, despite the fact that it is not normally required. Applicants who have volunteered or participated in medical-related extracurricular activities as an undergraduate have a better chance of impressing medical school admissions committees.
Step 2: Take the Medical School Admissions Exam.
Medical school applicants must take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), which is one factor that medical schools consider when determining who to admit. The MCAT assesses a student’s critical thinking and problem-solving abilities. It’s a multiple-choice test that covers biological and physical sciences, as well as reasoning skills. Students are also graded on a writing sample.
3rd Step: Get a Medical Degree
Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) degrees are awarded after four years of medical school. In the first two years, students study biochemistry, anatomy, pathology, ethics, pharmacology, and infectious diseases in the classroom and in the lab. They are also taught how to diagnose medical disorders, examine patients, and take case histories.
Internships allow students to treat patients in hospitals and clinics while being supervised by licenced doctors during the second half of medical school. Work hours can be punishing during internships and residencies, and shifts can be long, with night shifts being common. Rotations in specialties such as general medicine, emergency medicine, surgery, and obstetrics/gynecology provide medical students with a broad range of diagnostic experience.
Step 4: Complete your residency training.
After getting a medical degree, aspiring family doctors must complete a resident training programme to continue their clinical study. Most family medicine residencies last three years, during which time residents diagnose and treat patients in hospitals and clinics under the supervision of experienced physicians. Family medicine residency programmes concentrate on the illnesses and procedures that family doctors commonly see in their patients. Clinical rotations in critical care, paediatrics, dermatology, sports medicine, and cardiology are also available to residents. Documentary learning opportunities, such as seminars and conferences, are part of residency training.
Obtain a Medical License (Step 5)
All states require doctors to be licenced, but the standards differ. Graduating from a recognised medical programme, completing residency training, and passing mandatory licensure examinations are all common licencing criteria.
Step 6: Advance Your Career by Earning a Family Medicine Certification
Certification is a voluntary step that some doctors take to advance their careers and job prospects. The Board of Family Physicians or the Board of Family Medicine can certify family doctors who have graduated from an approved medical school, completed residency training, received a medical licence, and passed the required tests. To maintain their accreditation, certified family doctors must complete continuing education requirements.
