Health and care services

Screening for a healthier nation

Majella-Byrne-official-2013 Quality assured population-based screening programmes.

Population-based screening programmes are a vital feature of health provision in Ireland for the past twelve years and continue to grow, with two million people eligible for at least one screening programme.

Screening programmes aim to increase the prospect of better health for longer.

Reducing the incidence and impact of the conditions screened is a key objective of quality-assured population-based screening programmes, as early detection of a disease or condition means it is easier to treat resulting in improved outcomes.

A population group is identified that is at higher risk from a particular disease or condition than the general population, but is well and with no symptoms. The programme invites the individuals in that group to be screened at regular intervals.

The unique value of a screening programme is two-fold: it is that participants are tested at regular intervals, rather than taking the test once or on a random basis, and, that all aspects of the programme are organised, particularly for the small number of people that require further tests, surgery or treatment. The programme ensures that these are available in a timely manner.

Ireland now has four quality-assured government-funded screening programmes in place.

The National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS) is part of the Health Service Executive National Cancer Control Programme and has responsibility for those programmes. Programmes are free to those eligible and are designed to be accessible and user-friendly.

Quality assurance is an important aspect of all screening programmes, with a defined set of standards for each programme. Adherence to standards is continuously monitored and evaluated and changes are implemented where required.

BreastCheck (The National Breast Screening Programme) offers women aged 50 to 64 (over 430,000 women) a free mammogram every two years. During the past twelve years BreastCheck has provided 835,598 mammograms to 371,208 women and detected 5,484 cancers.

www.breastcheck.ie

CervicalCheck (The National Cervical Screening Programme) offers free regular smear tests to women aged 25 to 60 (over 1.3 million women) which can prevent cervical cancer. Since its launch in September 2008, almost 1.3 million smear tests were processed. During 2011 alone pre-cancerous abnormalities were detected in 8,091 women and cervical cancer was identified in 104 women.

www.cervicalcheck.ie

BowelScreen (The National Bowel Screening Programme) commenced at the end of last year and is initially aimed at men and women aged 60 to 69 years and will over time be offered to all men and women aged 55-74 (over one million people). It may take up to three years for the first round, after which each round should be completed in two years. The home test looks for tiny amounts of blood in the bowel motion (also called a stool) not visible to the eye. This does not indicate bowel cancer but can show more tests are necessary.

www.bowelscreen.ie

Diabetic RetinaScreen (The National Diabetic Retinal Screening Programme) All people with both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are at risk of developing diabetic retinopathy, the most common cause of sight loss in people of working age. Eye screening can find diabetic retinopathy at an early stage when treatment is more successful. It is aimed at people with diabetes aged 12 and over (190,000 people), signalling the expansion of population-based screening into non-cancer related conditions.

www.diabeticretinascreen.ie

Population-based screening is dynamic. Advances in testing methods, diagnostic elements and treatments through to external factors such as government policy impact the future direction and development of the programmes.

One of the most crucial elements in the effectiveness of the programmes is participation.

To date the high levels of participation are encouraging. If there is one thing that an individual can do it is to participate in a programme when invited and to encourage family and friends once invited to attend.

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