In This Issue: Local+Familiar=Healthier ======================================= * John J. Frey III A number of reports in this issue of the *Annals* connect the thread running from patients1 to place2,3 that affects quality, cost, and care. Three studies infer, from large regional or national data sets, that having access to primary care clinicians when it is more convenient for patients improves continuity and cost.4 If those patients have access to organized care on the correct scale of physician and nonphysician team members,5 then one could reasonably expect such outcomes as those regarding earlier detection of breast cancer, less-invasive cancers, and lower mortality reported by Roetzheim.6 In addition, the prospective study by Jean-Jacques and colleagues7 demonstrates that outreach through the mail to low-income minority patients regarding colon cancer screening with fecal occult blood substantially increases adherence to preventive protocols in a high-risk population. Operationalizing availability insists on new definitions of relationships that model communication and teamwork. We know that prevention yields long-term benefits, but turning knowledge into action is the challenge of our times. These reports look at different aspects of the same issues that are at the heart of a national discussion on rethinking primary care. In particular, the discussion of suitable panel size has been a source of debate as the United States moves toward a more population-based rather than fee-for-service structure for primary care. Whether through open-access scheduling, extended hours, outreach, or house calls, the image of family doctors as people who are available when and where patients need them is a compelling one. Thus, whatever the changes, continuity8–13 and connectedness14–16 are essential to the positive outcomes we strive for. Haggerty and colleagues17 create a complex instrument that captures the many components of continuity but, in essence, affirms 3 long-held conceptual aspects of primary care: coordination, comprehensiveness, and confidence.18,19 Two articles raise inconsistencies between what family doctors think patients want and what, when asked, patients say they want.20 When Hudson and colleagues21 inquired about the role primary care physicians should play in cancer care, they found that patients feel primary care is less central in their cancer care than physicians might believe. “Get us to our oncologist fast and often” might be a summary of their findings. If primary care physicians seek to focus on the person, cancer patients seem to want to focus on the cancer. Similarly, if aggregating data into large health information networks holds the promise of population health with targeted interventions on high-risk populations, patients in a region of New York don’t seem to see it that way.22 While countries like the Netherlands are using nationally aggregated data to understand health and health care delivery, the United States is plagued by a longstanding public suspicion of collective information being of positive use to patients or communities. People appear to trust public health less than Google, which continuously collects data on where you are and what you buy. Gillam and colleagues,23 in their systematic review of the Quality Outcomes Framework24,25 in the United Kingdom offer a sobering analysis of benefits and problems. As in any large and widely adopted attempt to change primary care practice, they find reason for optimism as well as cautionary findings. Although showing modest progress in achieving measurable targets for quality, the effects on cost and patient and clinician experiences of the process, which might be characterized as teaching to the test, has been more problematic. In this regard, Hunt and colleagues raise some unsettling questions about the nature of the relationship between the expanding definition of chronic illness and the explosion in pharmaceutical use in the United States.26 By showing the potential for more income for clinicians by using more drugs for increasingly stringent measures of questionable clinical significance, they observe that physicians spend more time adjusting drugs than taking into account the burdens that polypharmacy places on patients’ lives. This finding confirms Kafka’s line, “To write prescriptions is easy, to come to an understanding with people is hard.”27 Finally, the article on stroke narratives by White and colleagues28 describes the real trajectory of recovery and healing and the characteristics of the stages that recovery entails over long periods, as well as the mix of depression, anxiety, and hopefulness that our patients experience from such a life-changing event as a stroke. We welcome your reflections on all articles at [http://www.annfammed.org](http://www.annfammed.org). * Received for publication July 30, 2012. * Accepted for publication July 30, 2012. * © 2012 Annals of Family Medicine, Inc. ## References 1. Willis J. Friends in Low Places. Abingdon, Oxon, UK: Radcliffe Medical Press; 2001. 2. Loxterkamp D. Being there: on the place of the family physician. J Am Board Fam Pract. 1991;4(5):354–360. [FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6MzoiUERGIjtzOjExOiJqb3VybmFsQ29kZSI7czo1OiJqYWJmcCI7czo1OiJyZXNpZCI7czo3OiI0LzUvMzU0IjtzOjQ6ImF0b20iO3M6MjM6Ii9hbm5hbHNmbS8xMC81LzM4Ni5hdG9tIjt9czo4OiJmcmFnbWVudCI7czowOiIiO30=) 3. 1. Wirzba N , ed. The Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essays of Wendell Berry. Berkeley, CA: Counterpoint: Distributed by Publishers Group West; 2002. 4. Jerant A, Bertakis KD, Fenton JJ, Franks P. Extended office hours and health care expenditures: a national study. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):388–395. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS8zODgiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 5. Altschuler J, Margolius D, Bodenheimer T, Grumbach K. Estimating a reasonable patient panel size for primary care physicians with team-based task delegation. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):396–400. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS8zOTYiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 6. Roetzheim RG, Ferrante JM, Lee J, et al. The influence of primary care on breast cancer outcomes among Medicare beneficiaries. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):401–411. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80MDEiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 7. Jean-Jacques M, Kaleba EO, Gatta JL, Gracia G, Ryan ER, Choucair BN. Program to improve rates of colorectal cancer screening in a low-income, racially diverse population: a randomized controlled trial. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):412–417. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80MTIiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 8. De Maeseneer JM, De Prins L, Gosset C, Heyerick J. Provider continuity in family medicine: does it make a difference for total health care costs? Ann Fam Med. 2003;1(3):144–148. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiMS8zLzE0NCI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 9. Haggerty JL, Reid RJ, Freeman GK, Starfield BH, Adair CE, McKendry R. Continuity of care: a multidisciplinary review. BMJ. 2003;327(7425):1219–1221. [FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiRlVMTCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6MzoiYm1qIjtzOjU6InJlc2lkIjtzOjEzOiIzMjcvNzQyNS8xMjE5IjtzOjQ6ImF0b20iO3M6MjM6Ii9hbm5hbHNmbS8xMC81LzM4Ni5hdG9tIjt9czo4OiJmcmFnbWVudCI7czowOiIiO30=) 10. Mainous AG III., Goodwin MA, Stange KC. Patient-physician shared experiences and value patients place on continuity of care. Ann Fam Med. 2004;2(5):452–454. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiMi81LzQ1MiI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 11. Saultz JW, Albedaiwi W. Interpersonal continuity of care and patient satisfaction: a critical review. Ann Fam Med. 2004;2(5):445–451. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiMi81LzQ0NSI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 12. Saultz JW, Lochner J. Interpersonal continuity of care and care outcomes: a critical review. Ann Fam Med. 2005;3(2):159–166. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiMy8yLzE1OSI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 13. Turner D, Tarrant C, Windridge K, et al. Do patients value continuity of care in general practice? An investigation using stated preference discrete choice experiments. J Health Serv Res Policy. 2007;12(3):132–137. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6NToic3Boc3IiO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTIvMy8xMzIiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 14. Atlas SJ, Grant RW, Ferris TG, Chang Y, Barry MJ. Patient-physician connectedness and quality of primary care. Ann Intern Med. 2009; 150(5):325–335. [CrossRef](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.7326/0003-4819-150-5-200903030-00008&link_type=DOI) [PubMed](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=19258560&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fannalsfm%2F10%2F5%2F386.atom) [Web of Science](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=000264051700004&link_type=ISI) 15. Loxterkamp D. A vow of connectedness: views from the road to Beaver’s farm. Fam Med. 2001;33(4):244–247. [PubMed](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=11322515&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fannalsfm%2F10%2F5%2F386.atom) 16. Stange KC. A science of connectedness. Ann Fam Med. 2009;7(5): 387–395. [FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiRlVMTCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiNy81LzM4NyI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 17. Haggerty JL, Roberge D, Freeman GK, Beaulieu C, Bréton M. Validation of a generic measure of continuity of care: when patients encounter several clinicians. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):443–451. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80NDMiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 18. Carmichael LP. A different way of doctoring. Fam Med. 1985;17(5):4. [PubMed](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=3843087&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fannalsfm%2F10%2F5%2F386.atom) 19. Stange KC. A science of connectedness. Ann Fam Med. 2009;7(5): 387–395. [FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiRlVMTCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiNy81LzM4NyI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 20. Cheraghi-Sohi S, Hole AR, Mead N, et al. What patients want from primary care consultations: a discrete choice experiment to identify patients’ priorities. Ann Fam Med. 2008;6(2):107–115. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiNi8yLzEwNyI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 21. Hudson SV, Miller SM, Hemler J, et al. Adult cancer survivors discuss follow-up in primary care: ‘Not what I want, but maybe what I need.’ Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):418–427. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80MTgiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 22. Dhopeshwarkar RV, Kern LM, O’Donnell HC, Edwards AM, Kaushal R. Health care consumers’ preferences around health information exchange. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):428–434. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80MjgiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 23. Gillam SJ, Siriwardena AN, Steel N. Pay-for-performance in the United Kingdom: impact of the Quality and Outcomes Framework—a systematic review. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):461–468. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80NjEiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 24. Campbell SM, McDonald R, Lester H. The experience of pay for performance in English family practice: a qualitative study. Ann Fam Med. 2008;6(3):228–234. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6NzoiNi8zLzIyOCI7czo0OiJhdG9tIjtzOjIzOiIvYW5uYWxzZm0vMTAvNS8zODYuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9) 25. Campbell SM, Reeves D, Kontopantelis E, Sibbald B, Roland M. Effects of pay for performance on the quality of primary care in England. N Engl J Med. 2009;361(4):368–378. [CrossRef](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1056/NEJMsa0807651&link_type=DOI) [PubMed](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=19625717&link_type=MED&atom=%2Fannalsfm%2F10%2F5%2F386.atom) [Web of Science](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/external-ref?access_num=000268184500007&link_type=ISI) 26. Hunt LM, Kreiner M, Brody H. The changing face of chronic illness management in primary care: a qualitative study of underlying influences and unintended outcomes. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5):452–460. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80NTIiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==) 27. Kafka F. A country doctor. In: Selected Short Stories of Franz Kafka. New York, NY: The Modern Library; 1952:252. 28. White JH, Magin P, Attia J, Sturm J, Carter G, Pollack M. Trajectories of psychological distress after stroke. Ann Fam Med. 2012;10(5): 435–442. [Abstract/FREE Full Text](http://www.annfammed.org/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6ODoiYW5uYWxzZm0iO3M6NToicmVzaWQiO3M6ODoiMTAvNS80MzUiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMzoiL2FubmFsc2ZtLzEwLzUvMzg2LmF0b20iO31zOjg6ImZyYWdtZW50IjtzOjA6IiI7fQ==)