Internal Medicine

What is a Doctor of Internal Medicine, or Internists?

Internal medicine physicians, or internists, are specialists who apply scientific knowledge and clinical expertise to the diagnosis, treatment, and compassionate care of adults across the spectrum from health to complex illness. They are especially well trained in the diagnosis of puzzling medical problems, in the ongoing care of chronic illness, and in caring for patients with more than one disease. Internists also specialize in health promotion and disease prevention.

Internal medicine physicians can be called “internists,” “general internists,” and “doctors of internal medicine.” (But don’t mistake them with “intern,” who are doctors in their first year of residency training.) Although internists may act as primary care physicians, they are not family physicians, family practitioners, or general practitioners, whose training is not solely concentrated on adults, and may include surgery, obstetrics, and pediatrics.

Internists routinely see patients with conditions such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and chronic lung disease. An internist may consult with doctors in other fields of medicine but often provide specialty care in-house allowing for a consolidation of care rather than numerous, often costly, outside referrals.

To become an internist, a graduate of a four-year medical school must also complete a residency in internal medicine, which usually lasts three years. Once general internal medicine residency training is complete, a physician may begin to practice internal medicine, or an internist may then choose to sub-specialize in a particular area of internal medicine, for example, cardiology or infectious disease. Sub-specialty training, called fellowship, calls for two to three years of additional training.

Internal Medicine Providers:

@ Dripping Springs

• Erin Amjadi, MD

@ Lakeway

• Craig Kopecky, MD
• Truly Peterson, MD
• Anita Singal, MD

@ Southwest Medical Village

• William Gregory Berkley, MD
• Anumeha Kohli, MD
• Gurneet Kohli, MD

@ Westlake

• Robert Ondash, MD
• Robert Postlewait, MD