NHS Health Checks, a cardiovascular risk assessment programme for all adults aged 40–74 years in England, was introduced in 2009. The programme aims to both decrease the incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD), and reduce socio-economic and ethnic inequalities in cardiovascular health. The programme involves systematic screening, measurement of CVD risk factors, the generation of global risk estimates, risk communication and lifestyle counselling. In a study published in the Journal of Public Health, Andrew Dalton and colleagues examine the uptake of the programme in Ealing, London. They found that uptake of the programme and subsequent prescribing of statins in high risk patients was lower than predicted in the first year of the NHS Health Checks programme. Efforts to increase the uptake of the programme, particularly amongst patients more likely to have undiagnosed CVD or uncontrolled CVD risk factors, is needed.
NHS budgets are under considerable pressure. It is therefore unsurprising that many NHS Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) In England will aim to prioritise price in contract awards, But this approach is a significant threat to community-centred healthcare. While competitive tendering is a legally required, an excessive focus on costs in awarding NHS contracts risks overshadowing key factors such as established community trust, local expertise, and the long-term impact on continuity of care. This shift towards cheaper, often external, commercial providers threatens to cut the links between communities and their local health services. The argument that competitive tendering is solely about legal compliance, and not cost, is undermined by the very nature of such tendering, which by design encourages the lowest bid. This approach risks eroding the social fabric of local healthcare provision, where established relationships and understanding of specific community needs are essential. Establishe...
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