Fewer med students becoming internists

CHICAGO, Sept. 10 (UPI) -- Fewer U.S. medical students are choosing internal medicine as a career because of concerns about lifestyle and patient complexity, a study said.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found the number of students choosing residency training in general internal medicine has declined and young physicians are leaving the practice of internal medicine, leading to concerns of a shortfall by 2020.

Dr. Karen E. Hauer of the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues surveyed 1,177 fourth-year medical students at 11 U.S. medical schools in spring 2007. The researchers said students perceived internal medicine as requiring more paperwork, a greater breadth of knowledge and having a lower income potential.

"Current students recognize the increasing demands on internists, particularly primary care physicians, to accomplish large numbers of preventive and therapeutic interventions during short visits with chronically ill patients while also managing increasing administrative expectations," the report said.