Patient empanelment: the importance of understanding who is at home in the medical home

The policy brief by Peterson et al1 in this issue of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine presents a concise and provocative analysis of panel size estimation by family physicians. Empanelment is a foundational building block of high-performing primary care.2 Family physicians need to know the patients they are serving. One essential piece of information is the number of patients in their primary care practice—commonly referred to as “panel size”.3 By asking 1 simple question of family physicians, “Approximately what is the size of your patient panel?” the authors found that only about one-third of respondents who provide direct patient care could estimate their panel size. It is startling that so few of these family physicians could give even a rough estimate of the number of patients active in their practice.

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