New pop-up free health checks at Broad Street Mall

Wassim changed his lifestyle and improved his health, and now you can too with a new pop-up health venue at Broad Street Mall.

The 39-year-old Reading resident has lost weight, given up alcohol, and started exercising after discovering important details about his health during a free health check through the Community Wellness Outreach project.

He realised he had reached a point in his life where he had “let himself go” and had was drinking every weekend, when a friend recommended he attend a health check.

He booked the 30-minute appointment at the Weller Centre on Amersham Road, Caversham, at a session organised by project partners Reading Voluntary Action.

During the appointment with a Clinical Nurse Specialist from the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust’s Meet PEET Team (Patient Experience Engagement Team), his weight and height were measured to calculate his BMI, and blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure readings were taken. These measures help detect current or future risks of illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease, which can exist without obvious symptoms.

Wassim is one of more than 4,000 Reading adults who have had a health check through the project. Many received helpful advice about lifestyle changes to protect and improve their health, with some making changes to address high cholesterol or blood pressure. Others have been offered activities and suggestions to help tackle loneliness and social isolation Where needed, individuals with more immediate health concerns have been encouraged to visit their GP practice or another appropriate service for treatment or support.

Eligible residents can now have a free health check at Broad Street Mall in Reading’s town centre. The pop-up shop on the first floor is open every Tuesday and Thursday until the end of April.

Wassim said: “When the nurse fed back my results on my weight and my bloods, she advised me I was high on the BMI scale, as was my cholesterol. Essentially, I realised I needed to make a change if I wanted to be healthier. I was not happy.”

In his personal experience, Wassim linked his poor eating choices to drinking. He reduced his alcohol intake before stopping completely last summer, which he said made it easier for him to make better food choices.

He said: “I have lost 30 kilos, which is more than four stone. I am eating more healthily now and I’m going swimming at Rivermead Leisure Centre, which was offered as a way to make a change through the Give it a Go programme. I not only feel so much better, but I also look better and have so much more confidence. My mental health is so much better — all from going to a health check.”

Councillor Rachel Eden, Lead Councillor for Education and Public Health, said: “Having a health check can be the first step into something life changing, as Wassim found. It's also an opportunity to take stock even if you don't feel there's anything wrong right now, but you want to know what's going on inside. I'd urge anyone who is eligible to take advantage of a free health check. The project has already helped more than 4,000 Reading residents. Go along, have a chat, have the tests and work out how to change things to enable you to live a happier, healthier life.”

Rachel Spencer, Reading Voluntary Action Chief Executive, said: “We have held sessions in Whitley, Southcote and as many community settings as we could. Voluntary organisations have worked together to support this project and share the opportunities for health checks with their communities. We have worked hard with Broad Street Mall — who we would like to thank for their work to get us into the unit — to bring the checks to an easily accessible venue in the centre of Reading. We are there every week, so don’t delay: book a session at Broad Street Mall or one of our other community venues in the centre of Reading.”

Sharon Herring, Associate Chief Nurse at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Even if you feel well, you may have underlying risks of future health problems or conditions that haven’t shown any symptoms yet. Our friendly and approachable nurses provide quick and easy health checks to identify certain health conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes and suggest lifestyle changes to help you stay as healthy as possible for the future.”

The Community Wellness Outreach Project has been commissioned by the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board to reduce health inequalities. There has been significant collaboration between the Council, the town’s voluntary sector and Reading Voluntary Action, GP surgeries, Berkshire West Primary Care Alliance, and the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust.

Checks are available for Reading residents aged over 18 years who have not had a health check in the last two years and are not currently receiving treatment from a doctor for diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, chronic kidney disease, or being prescribed statins.

Book a check here.