General medicine in the 'eighties.

The general physician with or without an interest is directly responsible for the initial and continuing care in most acute medicine. Specialty interests cover the whole range of medicine but in most instances are subordinate to the claims of general medicine. Consultants in district general hospitals carry a bigger caseload in acute medicine than their colleagues in teaching hospitals, and this has implications for undergraduate and postgraduate training. The management of patients in intensive care units remains very much the task of the general physician. The general physician will continue to be an essential member of the hospital service in the foreseeable future.