Specialist Physician Practices as Patient-Centered Medical Homes

During the past few years, widespread support has emerged for the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) model of health care delivery. The PCMH combines traditional concepts of primary care (a personal physician providing first-contact, continuous, and comprehensive care) with newer responsibilities to systematically improve the health of the medical home's patient population (e.g., through the use of chronic disease registries, information technology, and new options for communication between patients and the practice). The framework for the model was created by the American College of Physicians (ACP), the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and the . . .