The Negative Impact of Health Screening

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Recommended: pros and cons to health screenings

1.0 Introduction 1.1 Background of the Issue Health screening is often thought of as the key to early diagnosis and treatment of illnesses – if a disease is spotted early, successful treatment is more likely. However, in reality, there are several complications behind medical screening tests that most patients have not had the opportunity to understand. In many cases it holds true that doctors and researchers have long known the consequences of certain medical tests, but this information has not been relayed to patients (Mc Cartney, 2014; “When to Say ‘Whoa!’ to Doctors,” 2012). 1.2 Recent Developments The belief that medical screening is essentially beneficial for health has been brought about by the recent influx of new treatments and technologies into the market (Begley & Sharon, 2011). As private-sector medical tests become increasingly common in countries like the UK, doctors now warn patients that these tests may actually bring about more harm than good (Bhattacharya, 2005; Dixon, 2013; Mc Cartney, 2014). Studies have concluded that several medical tests, like the Prostrate-Specific Antigen (PSA) test, do not actually offer any overall benefits. However, these tests continue to be recommended without clear explanations about their benefits (Mc Cartney, 2014). 1.3 Research Question In light of these recent developments, it is now of great importance to find out: Does health screening do more harm than good to patients? 1.4 Thesis Statement Health screening is, undoubtedly, more harmful than beneficial to patients by and large, because it leads to overdiagnosis, unwanted side effects as well as unnecessary expenditure on treatment. 1.5 Scope of the report This report describes the current situation in the medical scene – th... ... middle of paper ... ... warn of harmful medical screening. Retrieved from http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn7889-doctors-warn-of-harmful-medical-screening.html Dixon, H. (2013, August 19). NHS MOT health checks are ‘useless’, experts claim. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/10253660/NHS-MOT-health-checks-are-useless-experts-claim.html Geraci, R., Gordon, D., Gower, T., Harrar, S. & Paturel, A. (2008). What works, what doesn’t. Pleasantville, NY: Reader’s Digest. Mc Cartney, M. (2014, January 3). Patients deserve the truth: Health screening can do more harm than good. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2014/jan/03/patients-truth-health-screening-harm-good When to say ‘Whoa!’ to doctors. (2012, June). Consumer Reports Health. Retrieved from http://consumerhealthchoices.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/ChoosingWiselyWhoaPkg.pdf

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