MEDICAL SPECIALTY SELECTOR

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Medical Genetics

Approved as a bona fide clinical specialty and the twenty-fourth member of the American Board of Medical Specialties in 1993, medical genetics has evolved over the past 40 years from a basic science to a clinical discipline that many believe will become a factor in most patient encounters. It is predicted that a "revolution in health care delivery" will result in physicians' increasingly using genetic screening and testing to determine a patient's individual susceptibility to diseases. The key to the integration of medical genetics into the medical practice of all physicians is the basic family history.

Medical geneticists may choose to work primarily with infants and children. Some, trained as obstetricians may focus on the genetic problems of fetuses; others, trained as pediatricians, will care for children. Family physicians and general internists, trained as medical geneticists, may work primarily with adults who have family history of disease.

• Number of physicians in specialty - Very small, less than 1,000
• Competiveness of residency - Low
• Years of training required - Residency training is four years with the first two years usually completed in pediatrics, obstetrics-gynecology, internal medicine or family medicine.

Values & Personality Traits of Physicians in Medical Genetics

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