Digital NHS health checks will start in England next year

A digital version of the NHS Health Check offered to older people in the UK will be piloted in some areas of England early next year, according to the government.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has said the digital alternative to the current system of in-person health checks will be ready for testing in early 2025, with pilots planned for Norfolk, Medway, and Lambeth in London.

First announced in 2023 and originally scheduled to become available earlier this year, the digital health checks are an add-on to the functions of the NHS App, which has upwards of 34 million registered users – around three-quarters of the adult population in England.

The target is to deliver a million checks in the first four years of the digital programme, once it is widely available, as an addition to the current face-to-face programme.

The current system of in-person health checks is being offered to people aged 40 to 74 and is designed to spot early signs of stroke, kidney disease, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, or dementia.

DHSC has previously said that around 1.3 million checks are carried out each year, identifying 315,000 people living with obesity, 33,000 cases of hypertension, and preventing over 400 heart attacks and strokes.

The digital programme was announced after an initial pilot in Cornwall in 2022, in which patients used an at-home kit to take a blood sample and visited pharmacies or GP surgery waiting rooms for blood pressure checks before carrying out an online questionnaire. The results of the tests were entered into a questionnaire along with other information like height, weight, and lifestyle habits.

Along with the digital trial, DHSC also announced that around 130,000 people will be able to access a regular health check through their workplace under a new programme that is already getting underway, with employers like Jaguar Land Rover participating.

"Over 16 million people are eligible for an NHS Health Check, but current data shows that only around 40% of those invited went on to complete one," said the DHSC. "This is especially true for men, who are less likely to get early help, but who are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease at an earlier age than women."

It added: "With every check providing the equivalent of an NHS appointment, these checks will save thousands of hours of valuable NHS time, helping to cut waiting lists and rebuild the NHS."

A study published in January based on UK Biobank data found that a health check led to higher diagnosis rates for hypertension, high cholesterol, and chronic kidney disease compared to a matched cohort of people who did not receive one over two years of follow-up.

Checks were also associated with a 19% lower rate of dementia diagnosis, a 23% lower rate of acute kidney injury diagnosis, a 44% reduction of liver cirrhosis diagnosis, and a 23% lower risk of death from any cause.

The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) has expressed some reservations about digital options, however, saying the approach has merit, but will need to be thoroughly tested before being rolled out more widely.

Among its concerns are how well patients will understand any findings, practice staffing implications regarding the running, interpretation, and explanation of tests, and the effect on GP funding.