Sir, – I have recently noticed a growing trend of private companies offering extensive “health check” packages to healthy people who have no symptoms. These services are promoted as a way to “take control of your health,” yet the marketing rarely acknowledges the potential downsides. As a GP, I see the effects of this trend in my clinic every week.
Targeted screening, guided by a person’s medical or family history, can be genuinely life‑saving. National programmes such as breast, bowel, cervical, and diabetic retinopathy screening are rigorously monitored and linked to appropriate clinical follow‑up. But broad, untargeted testing of healthy individuals is a very different matter. Large, well‑designed studies show that such blanket screening does not reduce illness or death, and in many cases can cause harm.
False positives can lead to unnecessary worry and further invasive investigations. False negatives can offer false reassurance. Overdiagnosis labels people with conditions that would never have caused harm. Add to this the risks of radiation exposure, financial costs, insurance implications, and significant psychological stress, and the picture becomes far more complex. Meanwhile, patients with potentially concerning symptoms often struggle to access timely care in the public system, resources that are finite and should be prioritised for those who need them.
Your GP is trained to help you understand what tests are truly useful. We know your history, your risks, and your context – and can usually arrange the appropriate evidence‑based investigations at a fraction of the private‑sector cost.
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In medicine, more tests do not necessarily mean better care. – Yours, etc,
Dr Peter Kelly,
Co Wicklow.
