Digital NHS Health Checks to be piloted at three councils in 2025

Digital NHS Health Checks to identify risk of cardiovascular disease will be piloted by three local authorities in England before nationwide rollout.

Norfolk County Council, Medway Council and Lambeth Council have been selected as test sites by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), following a competitive expression of interest process.

A small number of patients in the areas will test the service in early 2025 before it is rolled out more widely.

The digital checks for hypertension will be available through the NHS App, meaning that users can take the check at home and results will be automatically written into their GP electronic health record.

According to a press release, published by DHSC on 30 August 2024, the digital checks are expected to deliver around one million checks in the first four years after launch.

Councillor Bill Borrett, cabinet member for public health and wellbeing at Norfolk County Council, said: “I’m really pleased that residents will have more options to access an NHS Health Check.

“The digital NHS Health Check aligns with our plans in Norfolk to explore alternative ways of delivering health checks to residents and increase numbers, particularly in areas of greatest need where the uptake is typically low.”

Patients will be able to access the digital health check via a mobile phone, tablet or computer.

They will complete an online questionnaire, enter height, weight and blood pressure measurements, and the results of a blood test.

Results will be available online and direct people to personalised advice to reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke, as well as advice to stop smoking and weight management support where appropriate.

Referrals to GPs will only be made if further tests and treatment are needed – with the aim of helping to reduce demand on GP services.

The initiative was first announced in June 2023, as an extension of existing in-person NHS Health Check for people aged between 40 years-old and 74-years-old.

Commissioned by local authorities and largely delivered through GP surgeries, the checks can help spot early signs of stroke, kidney disease, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and dementia.

Around 1.3 million in-person health checks are delivered each year, identifying 315,000 people living with obesity and 33,000 cases of hypertension, and preventing more than 400 heart attacks and strokes, according to DHSC figures.

The commitment to deliver a digital check followed a recommendation from the 2021 ‘NHS Health Check review’, led by Professor John Deanfield CBE.

More than 16 million people are eligible for an NHS Health Check, but NHSE data show that only around 40% of those invited for a check went on to complete one.