An internist is an internal medicine specialist who diagnoses illnesses related to internal organs and often cares for adults. İnternal medicine physicians work with adults’ and teenagers’ cases. This article will discuss how to become an internist, from educational to career paths in the Philippines.
We will talk about the following:
- What is an internist doctor?
- Can internal medicine be considered family medicine?
- Academic journey to be an internist in the Philippines
- Career paths for internal physicians in the Philippines
What is an internist doctor?
Internists diagnose and treat various ailments affecting the internal organs and systems, such as diabetes or an infectious illness. They also care for allergies, sinusitis, gastroesophageal reflux, ulcers, high blood pressure, and cholesterol. There are numerous subfields in internal medicine, such as:
- endocrinology,
- gastroenterology,
- cardiology,
- oncology,
- immunology,
- and rheumatology.
They commonly work in medical institutions and clinics to align healthcare over extended periods. To be able to master this broad spectrum of ailments and the details of patient management, candidates must receive extensive training.
Can internal medicine be considered family medicine?
Despite the similarities in their treatments, internal medicine has a different focus from family medicine. Internal medicine focuses on ailments that occur due to or may affect our internal organs, while family physicians treat diseases transmitted by genetic means.
Academic Journey to be an internist in the Philippines
How long does it take to become an internist? This part will discuss how to become an internal medicine doctor, starting with taking a Doctor of Medicine degree. In the Philippines, you then must have three years of medical residency. Below is the journey and requirements to become a doctor in the Philippines:
The Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree
A Doctor of Medicine degree is the main requirement to later specialize as an internist in the country. After graduating from high school, prospective medical students must have fast or standard tracks to receive their Doctor of Medicine degrees. The fast track lets you receive your MD degree in a shorter period, about six years, compared to the standard track, which often lasts eight years. We have listed a couple of the fast tracks you can take in the Philippines:
University of the Philippines’ Intarmed
University of the Philippines’ Intarmed selects prospective physicians in the first 10 percent of students to have the UPCAT successfully and provides them with a straight-from-high school medical program of seven years.
Bachelor in Human Biology at De La Salle University
Bachelor of Science in Human Biology at De La Salle University offers qualified and successful students the chance to earn their doctorate within six years. Students must study at DLSU-Taft through the first two years of the training, and later for the third year, they must take essential medicine courses at DLSU-Med.
De La Salle University, Dasmarinas
De La Salle University is another school that offers students the chance to complete their medical residencies in a shorter period, such as BS Biochemistry which allows students to enter medicine properly during their third year of medical education. The university also has a BS curriculum in Medical Biology like the BS Human Biology previously seen in DLSU-Taft.
The University of Santo Tomas
In 2019, the University of Santo Tomas also began to present a 6-year medicine program which is called “Innovative Doctor of Medicine” for students. The curriculum has a challenging collection process, and the ones who manage to complete the program can have their medical degrees without achieving a bachelor’s degree after just two years of general courses.
Pre-medicine courses
There stand pre-medical training which will benefit students willing to become doctors in the country. Pre-medicine courses would let students gain a pre-knowledge about the curriculum of their future medical residencies while also preparing them for the challenges of medical school. Some pre-med courses are bachelor of science in biology, psychology, pharmacy, public health, and physical therapy.
Some people change their mindset and discover the desire to become an internist after graduating from an unrelated major such as software engineering, marketing, or business administration. Thus, although completing a few pre-medical courses is the proper plan, pursuing a medical educational path with an unrelated course is also adequate.
The National Medical Admission Test (NMAT)
Prospective medical students in the Philippines must pass the National Medical Admission Test (NMAT) before enrolling in any medical school. NMAT, which aims to measure whether the student is ready to enter medical school, is commonly administered two times per year by the Center for Educational Measurement, CEM.
NMAT mainly consists of two parts. While the first part measures candidates’ verbal skill, inductive interpretation, numerical ability, and perceptual alertness through repetitive practice tests, the second consists of academic competence tests in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Social Sciences.
Prospective medical students are admitted to medical schools according to their college scores and NMAT results. You can take advantage of your Latin honors and higher NMAT grades. The required NMAT results may differ depending on the medical school you want to enroll in.
Enrollment in the Medical School
To enroll in a medical school in the Philippines, students must undergo an admission assessment with pretty much the same structure as the NMAT, so students who had their NMATs successfully before would avoid significant challenges.
Additionally, students need to be sure that they do not have any record of moral immorality like forgery, robbery, rape, or equivalents by official documents for enrollment in medical school. Once all the procedures, such as NMAT or the entrance exam, are completed, students need to present their CEMeds, which is the certificate of eligibility for admission to medical courses. To receive a CEMed, one needs to provide the following:
- Birth certificate
- Proof of ethical persona
- Transcript of records (TOR)
- The original copy or a duplicate of the NMAT score
- A version of the Certificate of Graduation verified by the school administrator
- Duly achieved CEMed submission form
Besides, it is a great advantage for students to have a reference letter from either a faculty member or the college dean of their previous school, even during the interview process. The panel interview aims to identify whether the student is shaped to become a doctor in the country. Also, it is a chance for administrators to dig into the characteristics of prospective students. Consequently, it is essential to show up with a proper level of confidence to perform your academic and social achievements.
About the curriculum of the Medical College
Medical school may be a completely new journey for students from various backgrounds. The 5-year educational path has different curriculums for each year, as stated:
First Year
In the initial year of the medical training, students take courses in biochemistry, preventive medicine, public health, human anatomy and physiology, psychiatry, and medical practice and begin to attend laboratory work which will continue until the end of the third year.
Second Year
After first-year completion in medical school, students will learn the essentials of pharmacology, microbiology, pathology, surgical medicine, medical economics, and psychiatry the following year. In addition, medical students in the Philippines start to receive practical training in hospital conditions from the second grade.
Third Year
The system in the third year of the curriculum aims to prepare medical students with the required knowledge and experience in patient management. The classes to be taken throughout the semester will make them aware of the symptoms and treatments of common diseases and allow them to learn the pathophysiology of rarely seen ailments by witnessing real cases.
Fourth Year
Before having their internships, mainly after the second or third year of school, students have a thesis, a clinical spoken or practical exam, or an impartial research assignment to complete. Then, in the last semester, they will be instructed to different departments of hospitals like obstetrics, pediatrics, internal medicine, or surgery for periods as an intern, and there will be a faculty member to evaluate students’ performance during rotations. Working with a counselor will allow students to benefit from her professional experiences and suggestions and may help develop some clinical skills.
Internship
After completing four years in medical school, students can take their official “Doctor of Medicine” diplomas, and now they need to finish a post-graduate internship. During the internship, students will witness medical cases in different fields, such as urology, gynecology, and pediatrics. It makes candidates improve in patient management.
The Physician Licensure Exam
Even though having the “Doctor of Medicine” certification, graduates cannot work in a medical company until they pass the physician licensure examination, which is given two times a year by the Board of Medicine, BOM. The physician licensure exam has two sorts: the basic and clinical sciences. The essential sciences category of the paper includes questions on:
- anatomy,
- physiology,
- biochemistry,
- microbiology,
- pathology,
- and pharmacology.
And the second part, which is considered clinical sciences, consists of:
- internal medicine,
- pediatrics,
- obstetrics and gynecology,
- surgery,
- legal medicine,
- and preventative medicine.
All prospective physicians need to have an overall average of 75%, which provides scores above 50% for each exam subject. Students succeeding in getting the required scores can finally start working as general practitioners in the country. On the contrary, to become an internist in the country, one must also undergo three years of medical residency.
Medical residency in internal medicine
The medical residency, also called specialty training, offers physicians an opportunity to enhance their clinical skills in hospitals by dealing with actual cases. The medical residency training is formed to make residents eligible specialists in internal medicine. During the residency, physicians can also decide whether to work in ambulatory practice or primary care.
Besides, residents can choose if they want to take the training in a public or private hospital. The residents in public hospitals will have more workload during the training, yet they will earn higher salaries than private hospitals. After completing your medical residency, you can start working as an internist in the Philippines.
Career paths for internal physicians in the Philippines
There are several career trajectories for internists working in the Philippines. They commonly work at hospitals as attendants, in private practice alone, or a team. Yet, it is also possible for internists to work with a research team or to become medical professors with a couple of years of fellowship.
Conclusion
To complete the challenging journey of becoming an internist, you must be patient and persistent. You may take a break before the medical training to consider all the aspects of a doctorate to realize whether you want to work in the healthcare system as an internist. And if, after your analysis, you still believe that being an internist is the profession of your desires, check out Doctor Jobs Today to gain pre-knowledge about your future career.
Are you an internist looking for a new role in the healthcare industry? Here at Doctor Jobs Today, we provide the most reliable and well-curated vacancies from the best medical institutions in the Philippines. You can also access various recommendations and guidelines to help you stay on track. Get your CV ready and find your future career in Doctor Jobs Today, now!
About Doctor Jobs Today
Doctor Jobs Today is the first job-seeking platform in Southeast Asia dedicated to serving the job-searching needs of healthcare professionals. We have created a space to connect employers and medical job seekers seamlessly. As part of the healthcare community, we aim to cater to medical doctors for their vacancy inquiries better than traditional job portals. With Docquity, you will only get job options that are relevant to you, sourced from the prestigious healthcare institutions in the country, because we are just as picky as you are!
Doctor Jobs Today has all the suitable vacancies you’re dreamed about: a higher salary, a better-equipped hospital for your specialization, or even a career shift from patient care.
About Docquity
If your educational and professional experience has not been sufficient to make your CV pop, expanding the network to other healthcare professionals to practice peer-to-peer learning might be the answer. One way to do it is by joining a social platform for healthcare professionals, such as Docquity.
Docquity is an AI-based state-of-the-art private & secure continual learning network of verified doctors, bringing you real-time knowledge from thousands of doctors worldwide. Today, Docquity has over 300,000 doctors spread across six countries in Asia.
Meet experts and trusted peers across Asia where you can safely discuss clinical cases, get up-to-date insights from webinars and research journals, and earn CME/CPD credits through certified courses. All with the ease of a mobile app available on Android & iOS platforms!
