What is the purpose of a physician index?

The purpose of a physician index is to support the tracking of various metrics related to the quality of care, operational efficiency, and patient management within a healthcare setting. Specifically, it serves to record and categorize patients based on the physicians responsible for their care, and can be utilized to analyze the number and types of patients seen, the procedures performed, and the outcomes associated with those procedures.

By comparing the number and quality of patients with operations, healthcare organizations can gather valuable insights into physician performance, identify trends, and ensure quality control. This information is critical for quality improvement initiatives, resource allocation, and performance evaluations with respect to both individual physicians and overall healthcare delivery.

The other choices focus on unrelated areas: tracking patient appointments does not directly relate to measuring care quality or outcomes; cataloging medical supplies pertains to inventory management rather than patient care; and managing physician licenses is an administrative function that does not align with the function of evaluating patient operations and outcomes. Hence, the role of the physician index is best captured by the option related to comparing patients and operations.