What kinds of doctors are there and what specifically do they do?

Question

Thanks in advance

Answer 1

Primary Care Doctors

Primary care doctors trained in general medicine and should be able to manage most medical problems without consulting a specialist. When the problem is more complicated or when it requires special expertise, a primary care doctor can recommend referrals to specialists and coordinate the recommendations of different specialists.

The three main types of doctors practicing primary care medicine are internists for adults, pediatricians for kids and family practitioners for people of all ages. Doctors in all three fields are themselves specialists, having undergone three or four years of training after medical school, although they aren’t usually referred to as specialists. General practitioners, who may have no training after a one-year internship—or in the case of the State of Louisiana, no training after medical school—are also considered primary care doctors. Some specialists like cardiologists spend some of their time seeing referral patients and some of their time doing primary care.

Primary care doctors have traditionally been the lowest paid and the lowest status doctors. This is changing as the country moves more in the direction of managed care. In HMOs, primary care doctors have taken on greater responsibility acting as so-called “gate-keepers,” blocking access to specialists unless they approve it.

Specialists

The following table lists various specialties and briefly describes what the doctors do. The major fields are listed in bold type. Subspecialties of major fields are listed below them. To be a cardiologist, for example, a doctor must first train for three years in internal medicine, then do a three year fellowship in cardiology. Some specialties not listed are a combination of two or more fields. For example, a pediatric cardiovascular surgeon performs heart operations on children. A radiation oncologist gives X-ray therapy for cancer patients.

What Different Specialists Do

Speciality

What They Handle

Family Practice  General Medicine

Pediatrics  General Medicine for Children

Internal Medicine  General Medicine for Adults

Allergy  Allergies, Asthma

Cardiology  The Heart

Endocrinology  Hormone Problems, Diabetes

Gastroenterology  The Stomach, Liver and Intestines

Geriatrics  Problems of the Elderly

Hematology  Blood Problems

Infectious Diseases  Infections

Oncology  Cancer

Nephrology  The Kidneys

Pulmonary  The Lungs

Rheumatology  Arthritis and Other Joint Problems

Surgery  General Surgery

Cardiovascular Surgery  Heart Surgery

Colorectal Surgery  Colon and Rectal Surgery

Neurosurgery  Brain Surgery

Ophthalmology The Eyes and Eye Surgery

Orthopedics  Bone and Joint Surgery

Otolaryngology  Ear, Nose and Throat Surgery

Plastic Surgery  Cosmetic Surgery

Thoracic Surgery  Chest and Lung Surgery

Urology  Urinary Tract Surgery, Prostate Problems

Vascular Surgery  Surgery on Veins and Arteries

Anesthesiology  Anesthetics for Surgery

Dermatology  The Skin

Emergency Medicine  Emergencies

Neurology  The Brain and Nervous System

Obstetrics/Gynecology  Delivering Babies/Female Organs

Psychiatry  Psychological Problems

Radiology  X-rays

Rehabilitation  Rehabilitation After Illness or Injuries

Answer 2

You're welcome. Ahhhhh.... Let's see now.

Endocrinologist- gland specialist

Cardiologist - heart

Oncologist - cancer specialist

Renal specialist - kidney

Pediatrician - child medicine specialist

Gynecologist - women's health issues specialist

Podiatrist - foot doctor

Chiropractor - skeletal system function specialist

Proctologist - r****m and a**s doctor (what a major!!)

Gerontologist - aged person health care specialist

Arthrologist- joint specialist

I hope this is a start :)

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