| It is pretty much a given that the majority of physicians | | | | 60% of family practice residency programs for 45% |
| will stay within 100 miles of their residency programs. | | | | of the nation's population. Family physicians in the |
| You want proof? Ask around. Not everyone will be | | | | Midwest earn on average $162,000 and out West |
| staying in that radius but enough will that it makes a | | | | $169,000. These areas are much more family-practice |
| difference. Now consider that over 50% of the training | | | | oriented than the Northeast and this number isn't |
| programs in the United States are in the Northeast | | | | alarming because most locations in the Midwest do not |
| corridor and the region accounts for just 18% of | | | | face intense competition from Internal Medicine. |
| population in the country. This fact alone creates | | | | California, Texas, Illinois, Michigan and Ohio have the |
| fantastic opportunities for the 50% of residents willing | | | | most programs and the states in the plains have the |
| to go where the good jobs are. | | | | lowest numbers, but also significantly lower populations. |
| Since the population to physician ratio is one of the | | | | It's the states like Missouri, Kentucky, and Indiana that |
| most important considerations as to whether a job is | | | | have few programs and decent sized population |
| great, good or poor let's take a look at regional | | | | bases that offer significant opportunities. |
| differences in training programs and what those | | | | When you consider that only 20% of programs are in |
| differences mean to you. | | | | the South, which now accounts for 36% of the |
| The Northeast has 20% of family practice programs | | | | population, it's conceivable that there is a larger |
| and just under 20% of the nation's population and the | | | | untapped market in the South than anywhere else. |
| average family physician makes $152,000. At first | | | | According to the US Census bureau Georgia, North |
| glance everything looks to be in equilibrium. The | | | | Carolina, South Carolina and Florida are four of the |
| problem you run into with the Northeast is the bias | | | | top-ten fastest growing states having grown by over |
| toward internal medicine and pediatrics. The evidence | | | | 700,000 per year since 2005. Yet not one of these |
| for the bias can be seen in that New York, | | | | states has more than 15 residency programs. From a |
| Massachusetts, and Connecticut each have nearly | | | | population-base perspective the potential is huge in the |
| three times as many internal medicine and pediatric | | | | South and as such the average family physician earns |
| programs as they do family practice. | | | | about $170,000 per year. |
| The Midwest and the West together have roughly | | | | |