Evaluating the Effectiveness of Preventive Health Screening Programs in Primary Care: A Population-Based Study

Abstract

Objective: To measure the impact of preventive health screening programmes in primary care, in terms of early detection of disease, uptake and better health outcomes in the general population.

Study Design: Population-based cross-sectional study.

Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in primary healthcare centres of Punjab Pakistan from January 2025 to June 2025.

Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study of 250 adult patients who visited the primary health clinics for a preventive health screening. Structured questionnaire, screening reports and medical records were used to gather data. Demographic and screening behaviours, as well as frequency of outpatient visits to health care providers, knowledge of preventive health care and early diagnosis of chronic diseases were measured. The data obtained were coded and analyzed using the software of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Descriptive and inferential statistics were used as appropriate, and results were presented in tabular, graphical and graphical form.

Results: The study showed that the preventive health screening programs greatly increased the early detection of hypertension, diabetes, and obesity. There was an increase in awareness of healthy lifestyle practices after screening by approximately 72% of the participants. The disease management and timely medical consultation were better in the regular participants in screening programs than irregular participants.

Conclusion: Preventive health screening programs in primary care have proven successful in early diagnosis, health awareness and disease management generally. The consistent application of such programmes will be able to decrease the disease burden and enhance overall wellbeing of communities. The primary care setting offers the greatest scope for implementing preventive health screening; preventive health screening can help detect chronic diseases early during their development; population-based studies need to be conducted to assess the potential for preventive health screening in primary care.