He also noted that it is too early to know whether there will be long-term gains in the ranks of generalists, because a proportion of residents who match in general internal medicine will always opt to subspecialize. Edward Lynch, FACP, director of the internal medicine residency program at Houston's Baylor College of Medicine, received 500 more applications this year than ever before. Equally encouraging, he said, has been the growth of applications from U.S. graduates. This year, he received 845 applications from U.S. graduates, up from 350 in 1993, when internal medicine was in something of a slump. In fact, internal medicine leaders were quick to point out that this year's news is a stark contrast to the predictions of doom the specialty faced just five years ago.
Educators point to a number of factors in internal medicine's recent success.
Jordan Cohen, MACP, president of the American Association of Medical Colleges, said that efforts within the specialty have helped. Baylor's Dr. Lynch, for example, pointed to state-funded efforts in Texas to place students in general internists' offices for preceptorships in the summer between their second and third years. He also said that internal medicine is getting a boost from the popularity of internal medicine special interest groups or clubs. One such club at Baylor that was started two years ago now has 150 members. The reason for internal medicine's steady growth may be more basic.