Continuity of Care
At our practice, we are committed to providing high-quality, patient-centred care — and continuity of care is a key part of this. We understand how important it is for patients to feel known, listened to, and supported by a clinician who understands their medical history and ongoing needs.
Continuity of care means seeing the same GP or clinician consistently over time, particularly for ongoing or long-term health concerns. It allows you to build a trusted relationship with a clinician who becomes familiar with your medical background, treatment plans, and personal circumstances.
At The Practice of Health, we pride ourselves on not only providing access to GP appointments on the NHS as much as possible, but we also attempt to ensure that each of these appointments has a familiar face.
While it may not always be possible to see the same clinician at every appointment, our aim is to offer continuity wherever we can — especially for patients who will benefit the most.
To understand why Continuity of Care is important, see our leaflet below for quick explanation of continuity of care, why it matters and how we balance continuity with access to appointments.
What Is Continuity Of Care?
The concept of continuity of care has a few different meanings depending on which parts of health and social care you are talking about, but in the context of general practice, it means having consultations when they are needed, with any needs and requirements respected.
For many people, the biggest example of continuity of care is having a primary GP at the practice that you see for all or at least as many appointments as are possible.
This is particularly important for people who are likely to have more regular appointments, such as people over 65, those with chronic health conditions that need to be carefully monitored over the course of years or decades, and people who are being monitored with new or shifting symptoms.
There are various types of continuity of care, from longitudinal (or traditional) continuity, which means that a patient sees the same GP as much as possible irrespective of the condition they are visiting for, to episodic continuity, which is care focused on a particular condition.
Why Does Continuity Of Care Matter?
Many GP practices want to balance continuity with access and availability, because everyone who books an appointment and visits our reception desk will have different needs.
Some people will be visiting for the first time with a certain set of symptoms, they will receive an examination, a consultation, a prescription and typically that will be the end of it.
If you have an ear infection, a sore throat that will not go away, shingles or an uncomplicated UTI, for example, treatment is usually a one-off process and any GP can and will provide a high quality of care.
However, other people will visit the practice regularly, whether that is monthly, weekly or multiple times a week. Continuity matters a lot and can have a major effect on the outcomes of treatment.
The doctor-patient relationship is very important, and if someone visits the same GP each time, they feel like they are being understood more, they feel like they are being listened to when it comes to care, treatment decisions and overall feedback.
Who benefits from Continuity?
Continuity of care can benefit a wide range of patients, including:
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Those with long-term conditions such as diabetes, COPD, asthma or heart disease
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Patients with complex medical needs who may require regular reviews or personalised care plans
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Older adults, particularly those with multiple health conditions
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Patients experiencing mental health challenges, where trust and understanding are especially important
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Anyone who prefers to build an ongoing relationship with a clinician they feel comfortable with
Continuity can lead to better health outcomes, fewer emergency appointments, and a more positive patient experience.
How Do We Balance Continuity With Access?
There was a historic assumption that you could either have more available appointment times or better continuity of care, but this is not really the case. Our practice works with patients to focus on getting them the type of care that they need when they need it.
Sometimes it is better to have immediate care, particularly if the symptoms could potentially require a hospital visit, whilst in other cases people might prefer to wait until the following week to see their usual GP.
General practice is under extreme pressure. The number of full-time equivalent, fully qualified and permanent GPs has been falling over time, reflecting the struggle to recruit and retain GPs. At the same time, demand for general practice is greater than ever, due in part to an ageing population, a higher prevalence of long-term conditions and pressures elsewhere in the health system. This means it is harder for patients to see a GP at all, let alone the same GP over time in order to develop a clinical relationship.
Continuity of Care in general practice is considered a key component of high-quality health care. An important aspect is whether patients are able to see their usual or preferred GP.
How Can You Help?
At The Practice of Health, we're exploring how patients feel about continuity of care - that is, the experience of seeing the same doctor or a consistent group of doctors for your ongoing medical needs. See our Continuity Counts leaflet which is a quick guide for patients.
To help us understand what matters to you most, we'd really appreciate if you could take a moment to complete a short questionnaire.
Your feedback will help shape how we deliver care in the future.