The terms “family practice” and “family medicine” are often used interchangeably to refer to physicians who have completed a family medicine residency program. The first part of the term, family, represents the specialty’s dedication to caring for patients at all stages of life, from cradle to grave. But what about the second part of the term?
Early on in the landscape of medical specialties, physicians with a broad scope who didn’t specialize were called GPs (general practitioners), a term that is still used by some today. In fact, even the American Academy of Family Physicians started out as the American Academy of General Practice, before transitioning to its current name in 1971. Over the 20th century came the standardization of medical training and the formalization of residency training programs. Today, family medicine is a specialty with a three-year residency training period, equivalent in length of training to other specialties such as pediatrics, internal medicine, and emergency medicine (although emergency medicine has wrestled with three years versus four years). During this training period, family medicine physicians learn from a wide variety of physicians and are taught to care for patients in multiple settings, including the clinic, hospital, ED, and labor and delivery (L&D) department, among others.
Despite our ability to do a vast amount well, the historical underpinnings have led to an incorrect perception of family physicians as “less trained” than physicians who specialize. And the term “family practice” itself perpetuates this misconception due to its connection to the term “general practice,” as GPs prior to the standardization of residency training did historically receive a shorter amount of training than physicians who specialized in a particular area. Although many who use the term “family practice” may not consciously think about this, there is a subtle subconscious notion that creeps through. For instance, when telling others that I am a family medicine physician, I have heard the following response multiple times: “Oh, you’re just a GP.” Granted, the usage of the term “general practitioner” is likely more generational than anything — but the word ‘just’ carries the connotation of ‘less than.’
Words and phrases certainly do matter. While the issue may seem like semantics to some, I would argue that the line of thinking that is partly related to the term “practice” is connected to a larger problem family medicine faces: a perception problem. To be clear, this problem is bigger than a phrase or title, but the words we use certainly contribute to our perceptions. This is why I would argue that we should always use the term family medicine, as opposed to the term family practice. Unlike family practice, family medicine conveys the extensive medical training family medicine physicians have received after medical school. In residency, family medicine physicians generally run their own inpatient medicine service under their supervising attendings, in addition to manning L&D wards and rotating through pediatric inpatient units, EDs, and subspecialty services, all while weaving in their own primary care outpatient clinics. This broad and comprehensive medical skill set is more adequately represented by including the word medicine in the name.
Beyond the implications associated with the history of medical specialties and the lasting perception of family medicine as less prestigious, in the world of modern health care, there is often a blurring of lines for patients around the roles and titles of people on their care team. Today, the terms practice and practitioner are more commonly used in the terms advanced practice provider (APP) and nurse practitioner (NP). While we are all important parts of the health care team, multiple different roles using the word “practice” may contribute to confusion on the patient’s end. Family medicine physicians are medical doctors with extensive medicine training, and our titles should reflect this reality.
Another potential point of confusion is the difference between family medicine and primary care. While family medicine-trained physicians can and very often do provide primary care, we are also trained to do so much more, as previously mentioned — from the hospital to L&D to the ED. Primary care is a broad term that includes those trained in family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, and even geriatrics and outpatient ob/gyn. Primary care simply means you are the central or front-line clinician who is often the patient’s first point of care in the outpatient setting. Primary care is the nexus for connecting all the moving parts of the patient’s complex care, and while family medicine physicians often do practice primary care, our training doesn’t limit us to only practicing in this arena.
All in all, consistently using the term family medicine should be the first step in a larger strategy to improve the perception of our specialty among physicians, medical students, nurses, allied health professionals, and patients. This moves us away from historical misconceptions that persist today and more adequately describes the work we do in a variety of health care settings.
What misconceptions do people have about your specialty? Share in the comments!
Dr. Del Carter is a family medicine resident physician in Tallahassee, FL. He enjoys traveling, watching Florida Gators sports, working on cars and motorcycles, and spending time with friends and family. He can be found on Instagram and X at @DelCarterMD. Dr. Carter was a 2024–2025 Doximity Op-Med Fellow, and continues as a 2025–2026 Doximity Op-Med Fellow.
Image by Denis Novikov / Getty
