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A general practitioner (GP) is a medical doctor who provides primary care and specializes in family medicine. A GP treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education for all ages and both sexes. They have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues and comorbidities. The term general practitioner is common in Ireland, the United Kingdom, some other Commonwealth countries, and Bulgaria. In the English-speaking countries the word physician is largely reserved for certain other types of medical specialists, notably in internal medicine. A Principal GP in the UK is a senior doctor; like consultants (the equaivalent of an attending physician elsewhere), they usually hold a Certificate of Completion of Training in the specialty of general practice. GPs may care for hospitalized patients; where they have hospital privileges, they may perform minor surgery and/or obstetrics. Many GPs do some minor procedures, such as removal of skin lesions, in their offices (their rooms, in UK and Commonwealth usage). In the past, GPs frequently carried out more major surgery, such as tonsillectomies, hernia repairs, and appendectomies. In the more rural parts of many countries, this style of medical practice continues. However, throughout much of the world in the last few decades, there has been an increase in the number and type of medical specialists, matched by a steady decrease in family physicians. General practice in Brazil is called clínica geral or clínica médica. Any physician is legally allowed to practice without any training after graduation in the medical school, but recent efforts by the government, the Brazilian Medical Association and the specialized Sociedade Brasileira de Clínica Médica are trying to demand also a specialist title for its practice, just like for others such as cardiology, endocrinology, etc. The majority of Brazilian GPs are located in the public health sector and is constituted mostly by young, recently graduated physicians[citation needed]. The reason is that GP is not terribly profitable and about 40% of Brazilian doctors prefer to do specialized practice, instead[citation needed]. To do this, they are required to do medical residence of variable duration and submit to a board of medical examiners in order to get the title of specialist. Each medical society is in charge of organizing the examinations (which usually are carried out once a year) and granting the titles to those physicians who passed the requirements. The title is recognized by the Federal Council of Medicine (the Federal professional regulatory body), the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health.
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