How to check a practice coordinates chronic care properly

Many people with chronic conditions drift between providers without anyone clearly taking charge. The GP stays silent on what the specialist recommends. The pharmacy queues pile up because nobody pre-authorised the repeats. Blood pressure logs sit unread. The patient becomes the default coordinator—phoning around, remembering what was said, chasing results—and when something slips, they carry the blame. A practice that coordinates chronic care properly removes that burden. But "proper" is not obvious from the website or a first visit. You need to know what to look for and what to verify before you commit your ongoing care to them.

What coordinated chronic care actually looks like in practice

Start by understanding the operational setup. A practice that coordinates well has a named clinician accountable for your case—usually your GP—who actively talks to your other doctors. Ask whether they use a shared electronic medical record or at least a documented handover process with specialists and pharmacy. Some practices use WhatsApp or secure messaging; others phone. What matters is that there is a *system*, not goodwill.

Ask how they manage your medication list across all your providers. Duplicate or conflicting drugs slip through gaps. A coordinating practice maintains one master list, checks it against specialist letters and pharmacy records, and flags interactions before you collect a script. Request a copy of your current medication summary and check whether it matches what your other doctors and pharmacy have on file. If it doesn't, that's a red flag about their coordination.

Inquire about their appointment scheduling for chronic conditions. Coordinated care is rarely one-off visits. Practices that do it properly offer regular check-ins—monthly, quarterly or as your condition warrants—at planned intervals, not just when you ring in crisis. They also book time to review your notes before you arrive, so the clinician is not starting from scratch. Ask whether they block time for results follow-up and whether you get a call with findings or just a generic "your bloods are normal" text.

Checking who they link with and how they prove it

Request a list of the specialists and pharmacies they regularly coordinate with. If they say "we work with everyone" but cannot name them, they are not coordinating—they are just seeing you. A practice doing the work will rattle off their allied network.

Ask to see a sample coordination letter or email they send to another provider. You do not need the full thing, but a line or two confirms they write something substantive. If they hand-write a one-liner like "Please continue this patient's care" and sign it, coordination is minimal.

For proof of registration and practice standards, check that the practice is registered with the HPCSA (Health Professions Council of South Africa) if your GP is a medical doctor, or the SADC (South African Dental Council) for dentists. Ask for the registration number and verify it yourself on the regulator's website. Also ask whether they hold malpractice insurance and what their complaints process is.

Phone one of their allied specialists or your current pharmacy and ask a simple question: "Does this practice send you letters or updates when they see a patient of yours?" They will give you an honest answer. A practice with poor coordination will be a blank name to the pharmacy or will be known for silence.

Talk to one existing patient if you can—ideally someone managing the same condition as you. Ask whether the GP remembers what was said last visit, whether prescriptions flow smoothly, and whether results come back in time. Bad coordination shows up fast in patient experience: repeated explanations, lost results, script delays.

Once you have a practice that ticks these boxes, clarify your own role. You are not the coordinator, but you do keep your own copy of results and know your medication names. A practice that coordinates properly will want that partnership, not secrecy. When you find one doing the work, the difference in your day-to-day life is real. On Strove, verified private medical and dental practices list their qualifications and coordination processes so you can compare them before you book.