Instead, nurse practitioners should counsel their well, asymptomatic patients regarding the importance of screening and focused health assessments performed according to their risk factors. These visits may include specific physical examination maneuvers and screening tests that should occur at intervals informed by the available evidence such as the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care and provincial cancer care organizations. Following evidence based recommendations, including relevant physical examination and screening test guidelines (pap smears, colorectal cancer screening, etc.) has been shown to be effective at helping nurse practitioners and their patients to find disease before symptoms arise.
Sources:
Boulware LE, et al. Systematic review: the value of the periodic health evaluation. Ann Intern Med. 2007 Feb 20;146(4):289-300. PMID: 17310053.
Krogsbøll LT, et al. General health checks in adults for reducing morbidity and mortality from disease: Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ. 2012 Nov 20;345:e7191. PMID: 23169868.
Si S, et al. Effectiveness of general practice-based health checks: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Gen Pract. 2014 Jan;64(618):e47-53. PMID: 24567582.
The Guide to Clinical Preventive Services 2012. Recommendations of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2012 Oct. Report No.: 12-05154. PMID: 23285491.
The periodic health examination. Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination. Can Med Assoc J. 1979 Nov 3;121(9):1193-254. PMID: 115569.
Thivierge C, et al. L’évaluation médicale périodique [Internet]. 2013 May [cited 2017 Aug 8].
Patient Materials:
Patient Pamphlet: Health Check-ups: When you need them and when you don’t