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General Practitioner Job Description: Top Duties and Qualifications

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A General Practitioner, or Family Doctor provides medical services to individuals in their local community. Their duties include conducting physical examinations of patients, creating treatment plans and giving general health advice.

General Practitioner duties and responsibilities

General Practitioners see patients daily to care for their general well-being. A General Practitioner main duties and responsibilities include:

  • Compling with all legislation applicable to practising medicine
  • Conducting physical examinations, tests or procedures to diagnose patients
  • Maintaining accurate medical records for all patients
  • Making recommendations for lifestyle changes to improve the patients’ quality of life
  • Prescribing medication, treatment or therapy to patients
  • Explaining test results and medical procedures to patients
  • Training junior Doctors and other healthcare professionals
  • Consulting with other Doctors about the specialised needs of some patients

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General Practitioner Job Description Examples:

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What does a General Practitioner do?

General Practitioners work in their own practice or for another medical practice. They care for patients of all ages and focus on their patients’ physical, psychological and social health needs. A General Practitioner diagnoses and treats a range of medical conditions. They refer patients to Physicians, other healthcare professionals or facilities for specialist or urgent treatment.

General Practitioners have flexible work schedules. They have irregular work hours as they typically work by appointment or on-call. It’s also common for them to work more than 60 hours per week.

General Practitioner skills and qualifications

General Practitioners should have excellent verbal and written communication skills to interact with patients and other healthcare professionals daily. A successful General Practitioner candidate will have various prerequisite skills and qualifications that typically include:

  • Counselling skills and the ability to listen actively to patients in a non-judgemental manner
  • The ability to deal with criticism and work well under severe pressure
  • Strong attention to detail
  • Patience and a calm demeanour in stressful situations
  • Familiarity with computers and commonly used software packages
  • Excellent bedside manner and time management skills
  • Willingness to continue learning throughout their career

General Practitioner experience requirements

Entry-level positions require the appropriate qualifications and a licence to practise as a General Practitioner. More senior positions require candidates to have three to five years of experience. Candidates typically complete their required work experience in a hospital, General Practitioner’s practise or care homes.

General Practitioner education and training requirements

Candidates must have completed a five-year degree in medicine that is recognised by the General Medical Council. Candidates’ CVs also need to reflect a two-year foundation course in general training and a three-year course in general practice. Candidates must also be members of the General Medical Council GP Register and have licences to practise as General Practitioners. It may also be advantageous to choose candidates who are members of the British Medical Association for continued professional development and training opportunities.

General Practitioner salary expectations

According to Indeed Salaries, the average salary for a General Practitioner is £51.82 per hour. The salary level for a General Practitioner depends on the hospital or healthcare facility, its location and the years of experience required.

Job description samples for similar positions

If the job description of a General Practitioner is not what you are looking for, here are sample job descriptions for similar positions:

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General Practitioner job description FAQs

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