HealthcareISCO 2211
General practitioner
General practitioners promote health, prevent, identify ill health, diagnose and treat diseases and promote recovery of physical and mental illness and health disorders of all kinds for all persons regardless of their age, sex or type of health problem.
Check yourself in a minute: general practitioner
Rate 5 of the 9 essential skills of this occupation (European ESCO data). No account needed.
manage research data
interact professionally in research and professional environments
provide healthcare services to patients in general medical practice
monitor children's physical development
demonstrate disciplinary expertise
About general practitioner
As a general practitioner, you will be a frontline healthcare provider responsible for promoting health, preventing disease, and treating a wide spectrum of acute and chronic illnesses across all age groups and backgrounds. Your day-to-day work involves conducting patient consultations, performing clinical examinations, diagnosing medical conditions, prescribing treatments, and managing ongoing patient relationships. You will develop continuity of care across populations, coordinate referrals to specialists when needed, and serve as the crucial link between patients and the broader healthcare system. General practitioners play a fundamental role in population health, disease prevention, and early intervention, making this role rewarding but demanding in its breadth of knowledge and responsibility.
Key Work Functions
Core areas of responsibility for a general practitioner.
1
Patient Consultation and Diagnosis
- Conduct comprehensive patient interviews to gather medical history, symptoms, and lifestyle information
- Perform physical examinations and clinical assessments to identify health issues and abnormalities
- Order and interpret diagnostic tests including laboratory results, imaging, and other investigations
- Formulate accurate diagnoses based on clinical evidence and synthesised medical information
- Demonstrate disciplinary expertise and abstract thinking when approaching complex clinical cases
2
Treatment Planning and Medication Management
- Develop personalised treatment plans tailored to individual patient needs and clinical conditions
- Prescribe appropriate medications and medical treatments with careful consideration of contraindications
- Educate patients about medication use, side effects, and adherence to treatment regimens
- Monitor treatment responses and adjust therapies based on patient outcomes and feedback
- Manage chronic disease conditions through long-term medication and lifestyle counselling
3
Preventive Care and Health Promotion
- Promote health and wellness through patient education on nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle modification
- Identify health risk factors and recommend preventive screening and vaccination programmes
- Monitor children's physical development and provide guidance on paediatric health and nutrition
- Counsel patients on mental health, stress management, and psychological well-being
4
Continuity of Care and Referral Management
- Build long-term therapeutic relationships with patients and provide consistent continuity of care
- Coordinate with specialists and healthcare providers to ensure comprehensive patient management
- Make appropriate referrals to specialists when conditions require advanced expertise or intervention
- Maintain comprehensive medical records and ensure secure data management compliant with regulations
5
Professional Development and Research
- Manage personal professional development through continuous education and skill advancement
- Stay current with medical literature, evidence-based practice guidelines, and clinical advancements
- Participate in professional environments, peer review, and quality improvement initiatives
- Manage research data and interact professionally in research and clinical audit activities
6
Technology and Administrative Management
- Operate electronic health record systems and open-source medical software efficiently
- Manage administrative tasks including scheduling, billing, and healthcare reporting requirements
- Maintain confidentiality and adhere to healthcare privacy regulations and professional ethics standards
European Skills Framework
Skills and knowledge areas required for this occupation based on European classification.
Essential (9)
manage research datamanage research dataProduce and analyse scientific data originating from qualitative and quantitative research methods. Store and maintain the data in research databases. Support the re-use of scientific data and be fami...interact professionally in research and professional environmentsinteract professionally in research and professional environmentsShow consideration to others as well as collegiality. Listen, give and receive feedback and respond perceptively to others, also involving staff supervision and leadership in a professional setting.provide healthcare services to patients in general medical practiceprovide healthcare services to patients in general medical practiceIn the exercise of the medical doctor's profession, provide healthcare services to patients in order to assess, maintain and restore patients' state of health.monitor children's physical developmentmonitor children's physical developmentRecognise and describe the development of children, observing the following criteria: weight, length, and head size, nutritional requirements, renal function, hormonal influences on development, respo...demonstrate disciplinary expertisedemonstrate disciplinary expertiseDemonstrate deep knowledge and complex understanding of a specific research area, including responsible research, research ethics and scientific integrity principles, privacy and GDPR requirements, re...think abstractlythink abstractlyDemonstrate the ability to use concepts in order to make and understand generalisations, and relate or connect them to other items, events, or experiences.manage personal professional developmentmanage personal professional developmentTake responsibility for lifelong learning and continuous professional development. Engage in learning to support and update professional competence. Identify priority areas for professional developmen...synthesise informationsynthesise informationCritically read, interpret, and summarise new and complex information from diverse sources.operate open source softwareoperate open source softwareOperate Open Source software, knowing the main Open Source models, licensing schemes, and the coding practices commonly adopted in the production of Open Source software.
Optional (43) — show
manage a healthcare unit budgetmanage a healthcare unit budgetManage a healthcare unit budget. Collaborate in budget planning processes including cost of supplies needed for adequate health services and management.evaluate data, information and digital contentevaluate data, information and digital contentAnalyse, compare and critically evaluate the credibility and reliability of sources of data, information and digital content. Analyse, interpret and critically evaluate the data, information and digit...identify digital competence gapsidentify digital competence gapsUnderstand where one’s own digital competence needs to be improved or updated. Be able to support others with their digital competence development. Seek opportunities for self-development and keep up-...manage a multidisciplinary team involved in patient caremanage a multidisciplinary team involved in patient careManage, oversee and work with a multidisciplinary team involved in patient care such as nurses and interns. This includes ensuring effective communication, organising work, and providing support for t...disseminate results to the scientific communitydisseminate results to the scientific communityPublicly disclose scientific results by any appropriate means, including conferences, workshops, colloquia and scientific publications.speak different languagesspeak different languagesMaster foreign languages to be able to communicate in one or more foreign languages.analyse X-ray imageryanalyse X-ray imageryAnalyse X-ray imagery in order to locate the sources of patients` difficulties and interpret the findings.address side effects of menopauseaddress side effects of menopauseAddress side effects of menopause such as fatigue, body temperature changes, mood swings, depression and weight gain. Search for symptoms of health problems that can be caused by menopause, such as he...protect personal data and privacyprotect personal data and privacyProtect personal data and privacy in digital environments. Understand how to use and share personally identifiable information while being able to protect oneself and others from damages. Understand t...evaluate research activitiesevaluate research activitiesReview proposals, progress, impact and outcomes of peer researchers, including through open peer review.teach in academic or vocational contextsteach in academic or vocational contextsInstruct students in the theory and practice of academic or vocational subjects, transferring the content of own and others' research activities.advise patients on infectious diseases when travellingadvise patients on infectious diseases when travellingInform and prepare patients who are about to travel to areas with high infection rates, administering immunisations and instructing patients on prevention and treatment of infections and infectious di...increase the impact of science on policy and societyincrease the impact of science on policy and societyInfluence evidence-informed policy and decision making by providing scientific input to and maintaining professional relationships with policymakers and other stakeholders.manage data, information and digital contentmanage data, information and digital contentOrganise, store and retrieve data, information and content in digital environments. Organise and process them in a structured environment.manage findable accessible interoperable and reusable datamanage findable accessible interoperable and reusable dataProduce, describe, store, preserve and (re) use scientific data based on FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) principles, making data as open as possible, and as closed as necessar...perform scientific researchperform scientific researchGain, correct or improve knowledge about phenomena by using scientific methods and techniques, based on empirical or measurable observations.advise on poisoning incidentsadvise on poisoning incidentsAdvise patients or other medical staff on how to handle overdose and poisoning intake in the most efficient manner.apply for research fundingapply for research fundingIdentify key relevant funding sources and prepare research grant application in order to obtain funds and grants. Write research proposals.promote open innovation in researchpromote open innovation in researchApply techniques, models, methods and strategies which contribute to the promotion of steps towards innovation through collaboration with people and organizations outside the organisation.teach medicineteach medicineContribute to the education process in medicine by activities such as giving lectures.provide care for a particular patient groupprovide care for a particular patient groupCare for patients with specific features, needs or characteristics such as children, older patients or patients with special needs.publish academic researchpublish academic researchConduct academic research, in universities and research institutions, or on a personal account, publish it in books or academic journals with the aim of contributing to a field of expertise and achiev...promote the transfer of knowledgepromote the transfer of knowledgeDeploy broad awareness of processes of knowledge valorisation aimed to maximise the two–way flow of technology, intellectual property, expertise and capability between the research base and industry o...interact through digital technologiesinteract through digital technologiesInteract through a variety of digital technologies and understand appropriate digital communication means for a given context.mentor individualsmentor individualsMentor individuals by providing emotional support, sharing experiences and giving advice to the individual to help them in their personal development, as well as adapting the support to the specific n...conduct health related researchconduct health related researchConduct research in health related topics and communicate findings orally, through public presentations or by writing reports and other publications.apply blended learningapply blended learningBe familiar with blended learning tools by combining traditional face-to-face and online learning, using digital tools, online technologies, and e-learning methods.treat medical conditions of elderly peopletreat medical conditions of elderly peopleProvide treatment to elderly patients affected by the diseases that are common in this age group such as Alzheimer`s disease, cancer (ovarian cancer, prostate cancer), dementia, diabetes, epilepsy, he...write scientific publicationswrite scientific publicationsPresent the hypothesis, findings, and conclusions of your scientific research in your field of expertise in a professional publication.develop professional network with researchers and scientistsdevelop professional network with researchers and scientistsDevelop alliances, contacts or partnerships, and exchange information with others. Foster integrated and open collaborations where different stakeholders co-create shared value research and innovation...use foreign languages for health-related researchuse foreign languages for health-related researchUse foreign languages for conducting and collaborating in health-related research.integrate gender dimension in researchintegrate gender dimension in researchTake into account in the whole research process the biological characteristics and the evolving social and cultural features of women and men (gender).perform project managementperform project managementManage and plan various resources, such as human resources, budget, deadline, results, and quality necessary for a specific project, and monitor the project's progress in order to achieve a specific g...protect health and well-being while using digital technologiesprotect health and well-being while using digital technologiesBe able to avoid health-risks and threats to physical and psychological well-being while using digital technologies. Be able to protect oneself and others from possible dangers in digital environments...manage open publicationsmanage open publicationsBe familiar with Open Publication strategies, with the use of information technology to support research, and with the development and management of CRIS (current research information systems) and ins...administer immunotherapyadminister immunotherapyAdjust immunotherapy dose and manage complications.browse, search and filter data, information and digital contentbrowse, search and filter data, information and digital contentArticulate information needs, search for data, information and content in digital environments, access them and navigate between them. Create and update personal search strategies.supervise medical residentssupervise medical residentsOversee and manage the work of residents within the specific medical unit, providing them with guidance and support.use foreign languages in patient careuse foreign languages in patient careCommunicate in foreign languages with healthcare users, their carers, or services providers. Use foreign languages to faciliate patient care according to the needs of the patient.conduct research across disciplinesconduct research across disciplinesWork and use research findings and data across disciplinary and/or functional boundaries.draft scientific or academic papers and technical documentationdraft scientific or academic papers and technical documentationDraft and edit scientific, academic or technical texts on different subjects.apply research ethics and scientific integrity principles in research activitiesapply research ethics and scientific integrity principles in research activitiesApply fundamental ethical principles and legislation to scientific research, including issues of research integrity. Perform, review, or report research avoiding misconducts such as fabrication, falsi...communicate with a non-scientific audiencecommunicate with a non-scientific audienceCommunicate about scientific findings to a non-scientific audience, including the general public. Tailor the communication of scientific concepts, debates, findings to the audience, using a variety of...
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Frequently asked questions
What does a general practitioner do?
General practitioners promote health, prevent, identify ill health, diagnose and treat diseases and promote recovery of physical and mental illness and health disorders of all kinds for all persons regardless of their age, sex or type of health problem.
What skills does a general practitioner need?
A general practitioner needs 9 essential skills, including manage research data, interact professionally in research and professional environments, provide healthcare services to patients in general medical practice, monitor children's physical development, demonstrate disciplinary expertise.
Will AI replace general practitioner jobs?
The AI disruption score for general practitioner is 24/100 (low risk). Skills most exposed to automation: browse, search and filter data, information and digital content, manage data, information and digital content, draft scientific or academic papers and technical documentation. Most resilient: mentor individuals, interact professionally in research and professional environments, provide care for a particular patient group.
AI Replacement Risk
24/ 100
Low Risk
Low riskHigh risk
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