Family physicians are commonly called "doctors," but this term refers to a very wide branch of medicine. A family physician's job, in a nutshell, is to treat patients from the time they're born to the time they die. They examine and treat all body parts and systems, as opposed to a specific entity in specialized fields. The salary for family physicians is roughly anywhere between $70 thousand and $150 thousand annually. One might want to work in the medical field chiefly for its high salary, but success in medicine comes to those who exercise patience. In a family physician's educational background, it is essential to have proper education; one's school career must include the following: a high school diploma, four years of college, four years of medical school, and anywhere from three to seven years in a residency program. Many, many classes have to be taken in order to pass medical school. The basic sciences include: neuroanatomy, anatomy, physiology, biology, pharmacology, psychology, microbiology, histology, physical diagnoses, and genetics. After two years of these demanding classes, you are required to study the different body systems, or clinical clerkships, which include pulmonology, cardiology, gastroenterology, and obstetrics and gynecology.