Research in the family physician's office.

Family medicine as a specialty has now "come of age." To maintain its new status, the specialty must be able to survive the vigorous assessment that is given other specialties by the public, the profession, and the academic community. One way of achieving this is for the family physician to do research of excellent quality and quantity. Traditionally, medical research has been done by secondary and tertiary care specialists and little has been done on the primary care needs of the black patient. The research done is of limited value for the family physician's daily work, a reason why family practitioners must do their own research. A research methodology has been described which is readily applicable to the family physician's office. It is an extension of good record keeping and includes Problem-Oriented Medical Records, an Age-Sex Register, a Daily Worksheet or Encounter Form, and a Morbidity Index, incorporating the "Pri-Care" (ICHPPC) code. The system is simple to use and requires only a small increase in administrative time. Every family physician is encouraged to consider its use.