4. What Do Family Physicians Do?
Family physicians are trained to deliver comprehensive, continuous care across the lifespan, including preventive services, chronic disease management, behavioral health, maternity care, inpatient medicine, and procedures; this focus on comprehensiveness is associated with improved health outcomes. They also support patients’ health through counseling on nutrition, lifestyle, and preventive risk, including genetic risk assessment. Using national data from family physicians and residents, this analysis examines preparedness, early‑career intentions, and how clinical scope evolves over time, highlighting substantial variation by career stage, geography, and practice environment.
These data reinforce that family physicians are broadly and comprehensively trained, many with additional areas of expertise and important roles as teachers. Despite being prepared to provide whole-person care across settings, conditions, and procedures, the differences between intended and realized scope shown in this chapter suggest that organizational structures, employment models, and health system policies influence how fully physicians are able to use their training in practice. As a result, changes in scope over time appear to reflect evolving practice environments rather than diminished preparation, highlighting the importance of systems that support comprehensive primary care.
The term family physicians as used above refers to ABFM board-certified family physicians (Diplomates) and datasets related to ABFM proprietary surveys.
