ELDERLY PEOPLES VIEWS OF AN ANNUAL SCREENING ASSESSMENT

A survey was carried out in order to identify elderly patients' percep tions of their health status, their health worries and their opinions regarding health screening before and after the introduction of an ann ual screening programme. Pre- and post-assessment self report, structu red questionnaires and standardized, objectively scored, functional an d medical assessments were used. The cohort was an age and sex stratif ied, 20% sample of those aged 75 years and over (133 patients). Result s showed that 96% of patients before the assessment and 98% of patient s afterwards, considered the annual assessment useful. The domiciliary visit by the health visitors resulted in one third of those patients who perceived themselves to be in good health and three quarters of th ose who perceived themselves to be in poor health becoming less worrie d about their health. Only two patients became more worried. Half of t hose objectively assessed as being in the medium health risk group and 68% of those in the high health risk group became less worried about their health after screening. Despite the majority of patients having welcomed the assessment their visit resulted in false, and potentially harmful, reassurance for a considerable number of individuals objecti vely assessed as being at medium and high health risk. An adverse cons equence of health screening in elderly people may be inappropriate rea ssurance for those objectively assessed to be at risk. However, screen ing procedures are a means to an end, not an end in themselves. The id entification of those at high risk should see subsequent implementatio n of services, investigations and increased support to relieve sufferi ng, so it may have been that patients felt less anxious because they w ere anticipating relief of their problems.