Internship (medicine)

A medical (or surgical) intern is a physician in training who has completed medical school and has a medical degree but does not yet have a license to practice medicine unsupervised. Medical education generally ends with a period of practical training similar to internship, but the way the overall program of academic and practical medical training is structured differs depending upon the country, as does the terminology used (see medical education and medical school for further details). In Australia, medical graduates must complete one year in an accredited hospital post before they receive full registration. This year of conditional registration is called the intern year. An internship is not necessarily completed in a hospital at the same state as the graduate's medical school. In Brazil, medical school consists of six years or twelve semesters. The final two years (or one and a half years, depending on the University in question) are the internship. During this time, students work extensive hospital hours and do basic hospital work while supervised by residents and staff. This period is usually divided among internal medicine, surgery, gynecology and obstetrics, pediatrics, emergency medicine, family medicine, and a final elective period in which the student chooses an area for further experience. On conclusion of the internship, the student becomes a doctor and may work unsupervised or enter a residency program to gain a specialty. After high school, a medical education in Chile takes seven years—five years as a medical student and two years as an intern, earning the degree of Médico Cirujano (equivalent to general practitioner in the USA). Internships minimally include the four basic specialties (internal medicine, general surgery, gynecology and obstetrics, and pediatrics). After completing the internship, the new physician may work in primary care, hospitals, or apply to residencies for a specialty. DR Congo has a two-year internship program for public health schools.