General Medicine/Internal Medicine

General Medicine

Definition: Broad medical specialty concerned with the diagnosis and nonsurgical treatment of diseases in adults.

Scope: Can include care for a wide variety of conditions across all organ systems.

Common in: Many countries, especially in the UK and Commonwealth nations, use "General Medicine" to describe what Americans would call "Internal Medicine."

Doctors Called: General physicians or consultants in general medicine.

Internal Medicine

Definition: A medical specialty focusing on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of adult diseases.

Scope: Internal medicine doctors (internists) are experts in complex diagnostic cases, chronic illness, and care of patients with multiple diseases.

Common in: The United States and Canada.

Subspecialties: Cardiology, Gastroenterology, Endocrinology, Rheumatology, etc.