Why should I have a preventive health assessment?
A visit to the doctor usually means that you are feeling unwell. The GP will diagnose an illness based on your symptoms and then prescribe the medication required to treat it.
This approach is fine for many medical problems, but unfortunately it does not work for some of the most common chronic diseases that affect us today – like cancer and heart disease. For these types of conditions help from a doctor is often sought too late, as they develop in silence causing irreversible damage to the body before symptoms even occur. We call these 'silent killers'.
What are silent killers?
Cardiovascular disease (heart, stroke and blood vessel disease)
Cardiovascular disease is by far the biggest cause of disability and death in adult New Zealanders, accounting for 30% of all deaths annually. Every 90 minutes a New Zealander dies of heart disease and almost one in 20 adults are diagnosed with heart disease. (Ministry of Health (2015) Mortality and Demographic data 2013 (provisional). Wellington: Ministry of Health).
Heart disease can be difficult to detect early, as it develops progressively over many years without producing any warning symptoms that might prompt a visit to the doctor. In fact, for around a third of all 'heart attack' victims, the first symptom is sudden death.
Cancer
Another silent killer is cancer. Cancer of the breast is a typical example and the most common cancer in women. Around 3000 New Zealand women are diagnosed and 600 die each year. (Ministry of Health. (2000 - 2010) Mortality and demographic data. Wellington: Ministry of Health).
Cancer of the breast generally produces no symptoms until it has reached an advanced stage. Yet with adequate examination and screening recommendations, breast cancer can usually be detected in its early stages, when treatment is most likely to be successful.
We must detect and treat the silent killers early on – before they produce any symptoms.
How are silent killers detected?
The only way to detect silent killers is through medical examination of apparently healthy people. This is a major function of the Dominion Clinic.
Even better than early diagnosis is preventing diseases altogether – and to some extent, this can be done. A recent report of the US National Academy of Sciences estimated that 50 percent of mortality from the ten leading causes of death in the USA could be traced to life-style. In other words, many of our more serious health problems are directly related to the way we live our lives. It is important to identify potential health hazards in our lifestyle or environment and make changes that are likely to lead to better health.
Dominion Clinic’s approach
We go further than the early detection of disease – we aim to educate, motivate and guide you towards a healthier lifestyle in order to reduce your risk of developing serious illness. Ultimately, our approach will increase the chance of adding more years to your life and 'more life to your years'.
