A local healthcare organisation is sharing the Health Secretary’s recent sentiments for people to continue seeking medical support for any concerning health issue, with the latest report by Cancer Research UK confirming that COVID-19 has resulted in 2,300 cancers a week being left undiagnosed.

 

Wolverhampton-based Paycare, a not-for-profit Health Cash Plan provider and Chamber Patron member, is encouraging people to seek support for non-coronavirus-related illnesses and to ensure a continued focus on prevention rather than cure, reminding Policyholders that (with the majority of plans) they have access to a virtual GP service.

 

Kevin Rogers, CEO of Paycare, told Prosper, “With a continued nationwide focus on Covid-19 and individuals instructed to stay at home unless urgent healthcare is needed, we’re equally concerned that many who absolutely need earlier medical intervention are being left without it.

 

“Our own virtual GP 24/7 service, provided by Medical Solutions, is used and relied on by many Policyholders each and every day. It’s been quick to react to the current environment and has increased capacity to respond to the number of calls and appointments being made. As we’ve seen from coverage in recent weeks, our main concern is that people are putting their health on hold because they don’t want to ‘overuse’ the system for what they think is non-urgent care.

 

“On the contrary, many people are continuing to be affected by physical and mental illnesses and it’s vital that we continue to provide the right support at the right time.

 

“Our GP 24/7 service, Counselling Helpline, and Employee Assistance Programme (with the majority of our plans) are all designed for this exact purpose, and I want to encourage as many of our Policyholders across the region to continue making use of them — as well as the wider general public to seek medical support if they’re concerned about any aspect of their health.”

 

Cancer Research UK figures showed the numbers of patients being referred urgently to hospital with suspicious symptoms has dropped since the start of the outbreak, with around 200,000 people per week no longer being screened for bowel, breast and cervical cancer across the UK, resulting in a significant number of early cancers left undetected.

 

For more information about Paycare’s health services, visit the website below