In case you missed it, the most recent issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine included an important but disturbing editorial “What We Don’t Know Can Hurt Our Patients” (excerpt here). The editorial piggy-backed on an article describing a study showing that most physicians don’t understand screening statistics.

The discussion got me to thinking about an ongoing LinkedIn forum, to which I’ve previously referred, in which wellness managers are falling in lock-step in support of requiring annual physical exams.

Here, for what it’s worth, is another one of my contributions to that discussion:

According to the US Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, “the US Preventive Services Task Force [in the 2nd edition of its preventive guidelines] has rejected the traditional emphasis on a standardized annual physical examination as an effective tool for improving the health of patients. Instead, they emphasized that the content and the frequency of the periodic health exam needs to be tailored to the age, health risks and preferences of each patient.”
A good overview of the topic, representing both sides, is available on the website of the American College of Physicians.

It’s important to identify how best to motivate employees to be fully engaged in their health and wellness. But first we must, as clearly as possible, identify those behaviors that are truly helpful. As for “annual” preventive exams, the most positive thing you can say is that the jury is still out.