Free health checks 'will save lives', Jeremy Hunt says

[Northerner]

Hundreds of lives could be saved if the NHS and local authorities did more to encourage people to take up free health checks, the health secretary has said.

Jeremy Hunt was highlighting the NHS Health Check programme, which is led by Public Health England (PHE).

A PHE review said checking the blood pressure, cholesterol, weight and lifestyle of people between 40 and 74 could curb diabetes and heart attacks.

Health charities welcomed the move to improve the number of checks.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-23394314

From the NHS perspective, this is all well and good, but have you tried to get an appointment in recent times, for anything? GP surgeries are already under massive pressure and you can bet your bottom dollar no extra money and resources are being provided to help cope with an increase in demand from 'the worried well', who, let's face it, are the people who would take up the offer of a check. This is another of those empty political statements that is 'free' for ministers to make because it sounds good, but won't achieve anything because there isn't enough manpower available to deal with the checks or subsequent follow-ups found to be required. Just my opinion!

 

[trophywench]

Well - amazingly our GP surgery sent for my husband last year - twice! Once to have an Abdominal Aortic scan and a couple of months after, to give hi a 'general' health check cos he was 64.

He now has to go every year for the latter - as we discovered when we came back off hols to a summons for the same blood tests. He subsequently has to see a nurse who will do his BP and weight and thereafter has to make an appt to see a doc to discuss the test results. No you can't make all the appts up front in one go .......

Oh it's OK, after all just like all the rest of us constrained by NHS appt systems, he doesn't have a life ......

Yet a fortnight ago on querying a skin lump I don't like the look of behind his ear, with the 'dermatology' GP, who said he thought it might be 'what we don't want it to be so I'll refer you to the hospital' - he hasn't heard a dickey bird from said hospital yet ......

We've been away for over a week, expected to come back to a letter - yes we will be on the phone in the morning to chase it ......