By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    physical health
    5 Ways Playing Games Can Improve Neural and Physical Health
    September 9, 2022
    Reasons For Hair Loss and Its Treatment
    Reasons For Hair Loss and Its Treatment
    February 16, 2022
    healthcare organization
    5 Actionable Strategies For Healthcare Organizations
    August 15, 2022
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    4 Reasons Chris Cornell’s Death Raises Medical Ethics Questions
    December 19, 2018
    What If You Could Sell Your Vote?
    August 24, 2017
    The Sleepy American
    September 12, 2017
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Due Diligence in Community Health Screening
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Public Health > Due Diligence in Community Health Screening
DiagnosticsPolicy & LawPublic HealthWellness

Due Diligence in Community Health Screening

docnieder
docnieder
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE

In our “more is better” culture it is hard for people to understand that more tests do not equal better health. Physicians feel it necessary to order tests for multiple reasons; defensive medicine, patient requests, belief that it will find early, more treatable disease.

In our “more is better” culture it is hard for people to understand that more tests do not equal better health. Physicians feel it necessary to order tests for multiple reasons; defensive medicine, patient requests, belief that it will find early, more treatable disease. Good examples of the latter is the controversy over the PSA test and yearly mammograms. In our community it is common for people of all ages to get Life Line Screening (the most well-known) or screenings done by other companies. It is offered at health fairs, as a perk for employees and their spouses, and at many churches. In my experience, most of the individuals undergoing these tests have almost no risk factors for the tests being run and many are too young for them.

Recently a middle-aged patient of mine came in with the results of her community screening in hand, done by a company called Stroke Prevention Plus. The first thing that I noticed was extremely high systolic blood pressure readings done by a technician looking for peripheral artery disease. This patient is a normal-sized woman who works out regularly. She’s never had a systolic blood pressure over 120 in my office much less 160. On the day I saw her it was up a little–125.

The oddest thing about the results was a black and white “photo” stuck with a piece of scotch tape in the middle of the page. It was from an ultrasound. In the middle of the photo was an arrow pointing to the edge of a black shadow and in the upper left-hand corner were the letters “L thyroid”. There was no identification on the photo whatsoever. Among the sheets that were mailed to her was a non-specific “Jane Doe” letter about “incidental findings” that could occur with the testing she had undergone. Nothing was addressed specifically to her. 

More Read

icd-10 and HIPAA
Improve Document Security in the Face of ICD-10: A HIPAA Checklist
Health 2.0 Europe: “Improving and Enriching the Patient-Provider Relationship”
Making Sense of Health Care Prices
Why Denial Is Dangerous For An Alcoholic Person?
Protected Health Information Security: You Should Be Worried

My interpretation, looking at the little photo and the arrow, is that the radiologist noticed a cyst on her left thyroid while interpreting the carotid ultrasound. I am speechless that she would be notified of a possible abnormality in such an impersonal and unprofessional manner. What if it is a cancer and she ignored it or wasn’t smart enough to understand the significance of that photo? What if she thought everyone got a photo like that attached to their result sheets?

Does the company, Stroke Prevention Plus, think that they did their “due diligence” and are absolved from further followup of these abnormalities by this notification? Since they’ve performed over seven million health screenings, and no doubt monetarily flourished in the process, do they feel it unnecessary to inform a patient in a CLEAR manner what they “incidentally” found? Do they feel that they have done the patient a favor because they could have ignored the results? What an odd decision on the company’s part! I’m thankful this patient is well-educated and understood that she should talk to me. I worry about other people who are not so capable.

This post was modified 6-12-2012 to reflect the fact that this patient was screened by another company whose forms directly resemble Life Line’s. Life Line has better protocols in place for followup. This does not negate the fact that there is no scientific support for screening such as Life Line in the general population, aging or otherwise, quite the opposite. http://www.minnpost.com/second-opinion/2012/03/buyer-beware-direct-consumer-health-screenings, http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/ultrasound-screening-misleading-the-public/, http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2011/06/examining-evidence-community-health-screening.html.

TAGGED:screening
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025
engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

Getting involved in the TBI community
DiagnosticsWellness

If I Can’t Donate Financially to TBI Research, How Else Can I Help?

February 25, 2016
Transforming Clinical Practice Initiative
BusinessHealth ReformPolicy & LawPublic Health

CMS Announces Win-Win to the Tune of $840 Million

October 28, 2014

5 Benefits Of Adding Massage Therapy To Your Routine

April 24, 2020
Wellness

Why You Should Emphasize Prenatal Dental Care

January 23, 2018
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?