The number of people searching for private health checks has soared across the UK prompting employers to consider this as part of their employment packages, according to new research.
Amid growing concerns around the rising cost of living, expenditures such as private health insurance or private health checks might seem out of reach for staff – but could present a real opportunity for employers looking to show their workforce they’re valued and act as potential perks for new talent.
This was revealed by health testing specialists, YorkTest, who analysed Google search data to discover current trends around private health testing.
Overall, searches for ‘private health check’ grew by almost 60% between 2019/20 and 2021/22 across the UK. Other phrases like ‘health MOT’ rose by 40.17% for the same time period.
According to the data, men were more likely to search for gender-specific health checks than women. For example, searches for ‘Bupa well man check’ soared by 156% between 2019/20 and 2021/22, while ‘Bupa female health check’ rose by 44%.
More than 400 relevant search terms were analysed to understand how much interest in private healthcare testing has grown, which can be found in the full research.
On a regional level, the research also found that some locations are more health-conscious than others. People in Leeds made the most related searches per capita, followed by Bristol and Derby whereas those in London, Stoke-on-Trent and Cardiff were least likely to search for private health testing.
The full results for each area is here:
| Location | Population | Searches for ‘private health check’ and ‘health MOT’ related terms | Index score (based on searched per capita) |
| Leeds | 503,388 | 9950 | 100 |
| Bristol | 571,922 | 10930 | 97 |
| Derby | 263,933 | 4910 | 94 |
| Nottingham | 311,823 | 5500 | 89 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 281,842 | 4910 | 88 |
| Edinburgh | 488,050 | 8320 | 86 |
| Manchester | 554,400 | 9040 | 82 |
| Glasgow | 612,040 | 9450 | 78 |
| Leicester | 470,965 | 7100 | 76 |
| Coventry | 369,127 | 5130 | 70 |
| Belfast | 328,937 | 4390 | 68 |
| Liverpool | 579,256 | 7540 | 66 |
| Hull | 288,671 | 3620 | 63 |
| Southampton | 269,231 | 3270 | 61 |
| Bradford | 361,046 | 4380 | 61 |
| Birmingham | 1,153,717 | 13690 | 60 |
| Sheffield | 544,402 | 6390 | 59 |
| Cardiff | 350,558 | 3910 | 56 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 277,051 | 2600 | 47 |
| London | 8,907,918 | 61060 | 35 |
Lung health, in particular, flew to the top of people’s consciousness over the last three years. Searches for ‘private lung health check’ also increased by 457% between 2019/20 and 2021/22. ‘Private sti tests’ was the search term with the least demand, only growing by 69% over the last three years.
Dr Gill Hart, scientific director at YorkTest said of the findings:
“The world has changed hugely over the last couple of years, affecting everything from the way we work to the way we take care of our bodies.
“Even day-to-day concerns such as feeling constantly tired, having trouble with digestion or focussing might have felt like a personal battle in the past, but more and more people are realising they can be solved – but only with access to information about what’s going on in your body. Luckily, there are credible at home health tests available that do just that.
“It’s interesting to consider the impact this might have on the workplace of today. Clearly there’s a demand for personal health checks, and as the cost of living grows, access to premium care will become more and more important to everyone – rather than bury their heads in the sand, people want to feel empowered to know how to take care of themselves best. And employers who realise this could soon meet their staff’s needs by providing them access to up-to-date, personalised health data.”
Clare Avery, Head of People at Wattbike, added:
“It’s more critical than ever that businesses understand the health and wellbeing of their employees and take significant steps to be the enabler of positive wellbeing, and not to be one of the causes of poor wellbeing.
“Applicants are increasingly asking about health and wellbeing initiatives and programmes that businesses offer, especially in the wake of COVID, but the trend was there before the pandemic. It’s a positive feature of a supportive employer and applicants are increasingly attracted to businesses that are investing in supporting their team members.
“Offering health checks and tests is the next step in health provision for employees. It is a proactive step that employers can take, whereas insurance or EAPs deal with the symptoms of poor health and wellbeing. I think we will see more employers offer this.”
For the full breakdown of regional and keyword rankings, visit: https://www.yorktest.com/blog/increased-demand-for-health-checks/