Adri Kok, MBBCh, MMed, FCP(SA), DipPEC(SA), FACP
— LOCATION —Alberton, South Africa
Dr. Kok was the 2025 recipient of the ACP Inspirational Global Member Award (established physician). She has been a specialist physician in private practice in Alberton, South Africa, since 1991. She is an external examiner for internal medicine at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa. Dr. Kok has delivered and participated in numerous national and international lectures, symposia, and conferences. She is principal investigator for South Africa for several multinational clinical trials with a focus on diabetes with publications in scientific peer-reviewed journals. She made video recordings for CMEs and updated six editions of a manual on diabetes for the Foundation for Professional Development. She was an ExCo member of the Faculty of Consulting Physicians of South Africa from 1999 and elected as President in 2004 where she remained until 2021. During her tenure, she initiated the annual Internal Medicine Congress from 2012 until 2023. She received Fellowship from the American College of Physicians as well as the Royal College of Physicians of London. Dr. Kok was elected to the executive committee of the International Society of Internal Medicine (ISIM) as the first woman and first representative from Africa and took office as President of ISIM in 2018. Dr Kok received an honorary membership by the Polish Society of Internal Medicine in May 2023. In August of 2023, she was awarded the Christaan Barnard Memorial Award for her outstanding contributions to the medical profession and the people of South Africa by Netcare Hospital Group.
What inspired you to pursue a career in internal medicine?
I was inspired by a general practitioner when I was growing up. He was always gentle but firm and gave a sense of reassurance. Even at a young age, his manner and wisdom stayed with me. So, in my teens, I decided this was my calling as I felt a definite sense of purpose in making the decision to follow this as my career of choice at the age of 15. I then chose subjects at school to be able to pursue this dream and doors opened, which confirmed for me that my decision was the right one for my life, and I never looked back.
What do you enjoy most about being an internal medicine physician?
For me, the patients and their individual stories provide motivation for my work. Each person has a story to tell, and they come with such trust that you as their doctor will be able to help them. I also appreciate the academic challenge to stay abreast of new developments in order to give my best to each person. Being a general physician also means you must continue educating yourself in all areas of internal medicine—whether it be cardiovascular disease, endocrinology, neurology, rheumatology, actually any of the subspecialist areas. In South Africa, there are few subspecialists in these specific divisions of internal medicine, so the work was never boring, ensuring a very broad knowledge of internal medicine. And it always remained a challenge to do so.
Can you share a memorable patient experience that influenced your approach to medicine?
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the joy of seeing a patient survive despite the multimorbidity of this disease kept me going. To be able to keep contact with families and spouses and hear about their progress even years later just made the grief and pain of the COVID pandemic manageable. There are many positive experiences where a patient living with diabetes, for example, receives new updated medication and then comes back to tell you it has changed their life. That type of feedback confirmed for me that, with individualized treatment and a new approach to management according to new guidelines, we could make a difference even when someone has a chronic disease such as diabetes. This is but one example of many.
What are the top three challenges you face in your practice as an internal medicine physician, and what innovative solutions have you implemented to overcome them?
The most important thing is to remain as current as possible and to ensure I am on top of new developments and treatments in each disease area. The second has been to be physically and mentally fit to be able to bring my best to every patient every day. The third was to focus on each individual patient as if they were the first person I was seeing to avoid losing that individual attention every single patient deserves.
To do this, I was able to attend conferences, I read widely, and I had the opportunity to lecture as well, which required me to be academically strong whilst applying that knowledge to the benefit of my patients and colleagues. I have always enjoyed sporting activities, and these helped me to remain fit as the physical challenge of the work was demanding, especially being on call regularly and [experiencing] long hours with interrupted sleep. Various sports helped me to do this and to enjoy relaxation whilst recharging my mental batteries at the same time. I have always had a deeper sense of life and death, my purpose, and what brings meaning to my life. For me, it meant to focus on what God intended for me and to pursue that with passion and commitment. This enabled me to be not only empathetic but to do so with real emotion and not to shy away from the pain and suffering patients and families have to endure as a result of whatever illness affects them and/or their family.
I had an awareness with every patient to really listen to them—their words and their body language as well as what was unsaid—to tease out their specific issues and then to do my best to address them. This did not always require medication but often an ear to listen and to understand their unique situation. You have to accept you may not have all the answers and so be willing to ask for help from colleagues and mentors and to consult if required.
What motivated you to join the American College of Physicians?
I was very fortunate to become a member of the International Society of Internal Medicine (ISIM), and through their involvement with ACP I became a member as well. At the time, I was the president of the physician association in South Africa and was recognized by ACP for my contribution to internal medicine. This was a tremendous honor, which I treasure to this day. I was then able to experience the value and impact this incredible organization, ACP, has had on physicians around the world, not only in the USA. I have had many opportunities with ISIM to lecture in different countries, and it has always been such a bonus to have a representative/ambassador from ACP there as well. Their contribution and commitment to physicians across the globe continues to develop leaders and to support the development of young physicians in these countries. ACP continues to support the work of ISIM and we have had a wonderful relationship, which continues to build for a strong future.
Which ACP resource do you find most valuable and why?
Annals of Internal Medicine has been a great source of scientific insights and new developments, research, and case reports. In addition, the incredible colleagues I have met during the annual conferences, during the international forum of leaders from multiple countries, and through internationally supported events have been influential in my own work and growth as a physician.
How do you maintain a healthy balance between your professional responsibilities and personal life?
It is an ongoing work in progress to ensure that you can enjoy your work but at the same time never neglect family and friends. They sustain me, and they are my first priority. Without their love and support my work would be meaningless. So, it requires ensuring that time spent with them must be central to my life and [that I am being] available to them as best I can. As much as I enjoy my work as a physician, it can never replace my family and actually my family helps me to be a better physician!
Congratulations on receiving the ACP Inspirational Global Member Award*! Why do you believe it is important to recognize the hard work and impact of colleagues within the internal medicine community?
Any recognition of your career and the work you do by your peers encourages you and it inspires you to do more, to give your best, and to support others to do the same. It has been an incredible honor and humbling experience to receive this award. It also serves to encourage young colleagues to follow your example and to be an inspiration to them.
*To learn more about the ACP Inspirational Global Member Award and how to nominate a colleague, more information can be found online.
Back to the July 2025 issue of ACP Global