Content review process

As part of the NHS Health Check content review process the programme’s expert scientific and clinical advisory panel (ESCAP) is inviting proposals from organisations on removing, amending or introducing new elements to the programme. This robust content review process will support ESCAP in making evidence-based recommendations to the Department of Health and ministers on possible changes to the programme. You can find more information here.

ESCAP is considering whether the current diabetes filter should be replaced with a validated risk assessment tool. Findings from a recent feasibility study show that following National Institute and Health Care Excellence (NICE) guidance to identify people at high risk using a validated risk tool will decrease the number of people identified at high-risk of diabetes compared to the current approach. However, this study also showed that reducing the threshold to identify people both at medium and high risk using a validated risk tool is more accurate at identifying people at risk.

As NICE recommends only identifying people at high risk ESCAP has agreed that these findings need to be discussed further with NICE officials. As a result ESCAP has agreed to put the proposal to transition to a validated tool on hold. The full feasibility report has now been published.