300 MINI workers sign up for free Mini Health Check at Cowley plant
Workers at MINI Plant Oxford signed up in their droves for a free Mini NHS Health Check.
300 staff at the Cowley plant underwent a health ‘road test’ during five days of sessions.
Free NHS Health Checks are designed to spot early warnings of stroke, kidney and heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and dementia.
They are funded by Oxfordshire County Council’s Public Health team, which seeks to improve the health of local people and protect them from preventable health issues – helping local residents live safe and healthy lives and play an active role in their communities.
The NHS Health Checks were held in collaboration with the BMW Group Global healthy heart campaign, which shares information on nutrition, exercise and heart health.
‘It was a fantastic result’
Andrew Cooke, health specialist at BMW Group, said: “Having so many people sign up for the health checks was a fantastic result. The sessions served as a really important exercise in raising health awareness and helped to complement our wider BMW Group strategy on the importance of nutrition and regular exercise.
“It was also a fantastic opportunity for some great joint working between ourselves and colleagues from Oxfordshire County Council and the NHS Health Checks programme.”
Members of the county council’s Public Health team were joined at the event by colleagues from Achieve Oxfordshire, which promotes healthy weight loss, the stop smoking service Smokefreelife Oxfordshire and Active Oxfordshire.
Stephen Pinel, health improvement principal for Public Health, said: “It was great to promote the NHS Health Checks programme for people aged 40 to 74. We were trying to encourage the workforce to know their blood pressure numbers, engage with lifestyle services and start conversations about leading a healthier lifestyle.”
Get yourself checked out
NHS Health checks are available to anyone aged between 40 and 74 who has not already been diagnosed with an existing cardiovascular condition.
Your GP surgery will automatically send out invitations once every five years, but if you haven’t had one, or didn’t respond to the invite, contact your surgery and make an appointment.
The full check will take around 20 minutes:
- You will be asked some simple questions about your family history, whether or not you smoke and how much alcohol you drink
- Your height, weight, sex, ethnicity and age will be recorded
- Your blood pressure will be taken
- A simple blood test will check your cholesterol level
- Your body mass index (BMI) will be calculated. BMI is a measure of whether you're a healthy weight for your height.
- Your level of risk of developing a cardiovascular condition (i.e. stroke, kidney and heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and dementia) will be calculated
The Mini NHS Health Checks at MINI Plant Oxford featured all of the above except a blood test and the calculation of cardiovascular risk.
Although the mini check is an excellent start to taking responsibility for your own health, the full check is the only way to properly assess your cardiovascular risk.
For further information about free NHS Health Checks visit: www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/nhshealthcheck