Health checks offered to millions of people over 40 are a waste of time, says the UK’s leading GP.
Dr Clare Gerada, chair of the Royal College of GPs, says the government is promoting its NHS Health Check programme “against good evidence”.
Her comments come after The Times newspaper published a letter from Danish researchers criticising the programme.
The Nordic Cochrane Centre group found health MoTs did not reduce deaths.
Did anyone seriously expect any different? I have never had one of these, despite having had a letter offering one. I know if I’m not feeling well and will, if I think it warrants it, see my GP. This is usually a monumental waste of time as it is nothing they can do anything about anyway.
You would have thought, for example, that going in and mentioning that my prostate problems appeared to be worsening, that the GP would, you know, check? Nope. The resulting blood test told us nothing and by the time that all happened, the symptoms had abated. So now when it happens, I just manage it myself.
I am not going to have a health MOT. I have neither the time to waste, nor the inclination just to be told that my blood pressure is fine, my weight is within the recommended BMI (just) and to be quizzed on my drinking and smoking habits.
“They [health checks] are not based on good evidence. They are pulling in an awful lot of people who have nothing wrong with them. And the very people you would want to be dragging in do not attend.”
Quite.
“We should be focusing on the hard-to-reach groups instead and policies like plain packaging for cigarettes and minimum pricing for alcohol.”
Oh, what the fucking fuckitty fuck?!? And Dr Gerada started out so well…
XX to be quizzed on my drinking and smoking habits.XX
I was at the doctors just today (Diabetes, I need a blood test every three months. All is PERFECT!)
“High…..(I dunno, something “Leberfettwert” or something) count. That can be caused by XYZ, and drinking and smoking.”
“NA!” thought I, after reading here for quite a while, “Here it comes……”
No.
Not a single breath about “How much do you drink? How much do you smoke?”
NOTHING!
Just a “It can be caused….. Right we will see us in three months.”
That was IT!
So do NOT let them tell you this is E.U wide, it is NOT. It is youre own doctors taking directions from the Westminster dicatorship, that are implimenting this.
I find on the whole Doctors are a waste of time so why would a health MOT be any different. When I moved here a year ago I had to register with a new GP because 400 miles was a little far to go to see a GP , pity really because I had had my previous GP 23 years (he even came to my home to deliver my daughter as an emergency) and he was a real old fashioned family GP, He really cared and no matter how busy would take his time and really get to the root cause of what was going on.
After the lengthy registration process I saw a “Nurse Practitioner” (what sort of effin jeffing name is that!) who did my blood pressure heart rate etc, she weighed me and asked dumb questions about drinking smoking, then said “OH has anyone ever mentioned erratic heartbeat to you before”
“NO” says I “do tell”
“Well your heart seems to be missing a few beats…..”
we sat there for a few minutes whilst she redid the pulse rate checks eventually it was ok no suggestion of further investigation though, I am still upright and walking around so I guess all is well!
In my entire life I have never been one to get really ill, generally like you LR managing things myself unless I am REALLY ill.
In the last 2 months I have had 2 x ear infections 2 x lots of antibiotics and 1x very itchy rash for which I was given antihistamines (having already said to my husband all they will do is give me anti bloody histamines!) on each occasion I was told it’s Viral (Pause for effect) its non specific and viral.
WOW and you went to medical school for how many years for this outcome!?
I despair, If I am every truly ill they will have to fight me to get me into hospital.
I was offered one of these over 40’s MOT’s I said rather sarcastically “NO thanks so much I would rather drop dead because I am going to drop dead, and not because you manage to magic up some nonsense, and decide to prod probe and generally interfere with my doings and workings, so if you don’t mind Ill pass but really thanks for the offer”
Bloody load of waffle of course these things are a waste of time, because you need a GP who has a clue to start with and sadly these are few and far between these days.
I am in two minds about this. Part of me says why shouldn’t the average person who never troubles the GP’s from one year to the next not have a quick health MOT. Then again if it is not cost effective then maybe the money should be spent elsewhere (or not at all – I appreciate this is a radical suggestion and unlikely to be acceptable to health professionals).
If the health MOT’s are not the answer then I am afraid it will be back to the macro health issues like targeting those of us addicted to fags, booze and junk diets. May not go down too well with the readers of this blog though.