Patient registries at the physician level provide health plans, providers and disease management programs with a more accurate picture of the patient experience — individually or as a population. The patient registry is a cornerstone of Edward Wagner's chronic care model, the foundation of the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) and practically a prerequisite for participation in quality measurement and pay-for-performance (PFP) initiatives.

Simple Steps to a Patient Registry: Ticket to Care Coordination, Quality Reporting and Pay for Performance illustrates how even the solo practitioner can simply and inexpensively implement a population-based registry that provides actionable information on patient needs. From a set of index cards in a shoebox to a clinical information system auto-populated from an electronic medical record, the patient registry guides the entire care team in the management of chronic illness and preventive care. Registries also have been shown to decrease per-member costs and reduce hospital admissions.