Survey: General internists leaving practice

Nearly one in 10 internists originally certified between 1990 and 1995, including 17 percent of general internists and 4 percent of internal medicine subspecialists, are no longer working in general internal medicine or one of its subspecialties about a decade after their original certification, according to a recent survey.

The survey, conducted by the American College of Physicians and the American Board of Internal Medicine, published by the Journal of General Internal Medicine, found that although most are satisfied with their career choice, a significantly lower proportion of general internists (70 percent) than internal medicine subspecialists (77 percent) were satisfied with their career.

A greater proportion of general internists and internal medicine subspecialists who left internal medicine are satisfied with their career (87 percent) than those still working in internal medicine (74 percent).