Medichecks Review: Are Private Blood Tests Reliable?

Overview

1. Products: A variety of health and wellness tests with the option of at-home or in-clinic sample collection.
2. Cost: Prices can vary from $47 to over $800 per test. The company also charges an additional fee for customers who wish to have their sample taken from a healthcare provider.
3. Reports: Health and wellness lab results with doctors’ commentary.
4. Raw data access: The company does not offer DNA testing, so customers cannot gain access to their raw genetic data from a Medichecks’ test.
5. Privacy: Medichecks claims not to sell or share personal information with third parties, but they may disclose it to Public Health England in some cases.
6. Alternatives: SelfDecode offers personalized diet, lifestyle, and supplement recommendations based on your DNA and labs.

Pros

• Offers a variety of health and wellness tests.
• Customers can choose whether they want to have their sample collected at home or in a partner clinic.

Cons

• Medichecks does not offer a DNA test.
• Each test is sold separately, so it can become expensive to those who wish to analyze multiple aspects of their health.
• No option to upload past test results to get recommendations.
• Only available in the United Kingdom.

About Medichecks

Medichecks is a private blood testing company founded in 2002 by Helen Marsden, who previously worked in business development in the City of London. The company was the first direct-to-consumer blood testing service in the United Kingdom.

They have a network of accredited partner laboratories that are inspected by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS).

Review of Medichecks Products & Features

Medichecks offers a wide range of laboratory tests directly to the consumer. These include tests for Women’s and Men’s Health, Thyroid, Sports Performance, Wellness, and various health conditions.

The company tests a few selected biomarkers to give customers insights on a particular health aspect. Some of these panels only analyze a single biomarker, while others can include over 50.

There are several ways customers can have their samples collected. Some tests can be performed at home by using a finger-prick collection kit. In this case, Medichecks sends an instructional email to the user, and a collection kit is sent to their house. The blood sample must be sent to the laboratory on the same day it is collected to avoid degradation.

A portion of the tests offered by the company requires a venous blood sample, which needs to be collected by a qualified healthcare professional. One option for a venous blood draw is to visit a Medichecks partner clinic.

Similarly to the finger-prick test, if a user has their sample collected in a partner clinic, they need to post it to Medichecks on the same day it is taken.

The company also has a network of nurses for customers who wish to have a venous blood collection at home for an additional cost. After the order is confirmed, the nurse service in the user’s area will get in touch to arrange a suitable time and date for the appointment. The nurse will be responsible for posting the blood sample.

Keep in mind that many customers complained that they had issues scheduling an appointment with a Medichecks partner healthcare professional.

If the user knows a qualified professional, they can choose to make arrangements to have their blood sample taken without the need to purchase this service from Medichecks.

In any case, customers are encouraged to answer a few health and lifestyle questions on their My Medichecks portal to help the reviewing doctors provide more accurate insights.

Review of Medichecks Reports

Medichecks states they email customers when their test results are ready to be viewed. Results are available on their online portal, and users can access them on their personal dashboard. The company also provides a downloadable PDF with the results.

After the sample is analyzed by the laboratory, Medichecks claims a doctor will verify the results and include explanations and commentaries to help customers better understand them. The company states that their physicians are qualified and have the knowledge and experience to interpret the wide variety of tests offered, but some customers found the comments provided to be lacking in depth.

As can be seen from the screenshot below, Medichecks presents the results by biomarker. The report includes the date the test was performed and the value of each biomarker. The company also displays the results on a colored bar indicating if they are within the normal range, borderline, or outside the normal range. However, there are no insights into where the results fall from their optimal range.

If customers wish to view additional information, they can click on the arrow next to each result. Here, Medichecks allows users to keep track of their past test results and provides a description of each biomarker. A screenshot of the Results Tracker Graph can be seen below.

Medichecks states that a doctor from their team will check the results and add commentary to help users understand their results, but they do not claim to offer recommendations to help people optimize their labs. While the company offers a decent number of lab tests, some customers complain that there are not enough markers analyzed per test, while others question the reliability of the test.

Cost of Medichecks

Medichecks’ prices vary depending on which tests customers choose, and they can range from $47 to over $800 for a single test. Moreover, prices can change depending on which sample collection method is chosen (finger-prick, in-clinic, or nurse visit).

Since each test must be purchased separately, it can become expensive to analyze multiple aspects of one’s health, as there is no option to upload other lab results to receive insights.

Health Recommendations from Medichecks

Medichecks states their doctors provide comments and explanations about the test results to help customers better understand their results. Additionally, the company states their doctors will advise users of any results that may require further action.

However, customers have complained about partial or unreliable results, with one customer commenting how there were not enough markers analyzed for the test they acquired.

Review of Medichecks Privacy & Data Security

Medichecks states they do not sell or share personal information with third parties. They email a link to their privacy policy to users who register on their website or make purchases to facilitate access to this information.

The company claims to only ask for personal data if required for specific purposes. For example, they may collect information from customers such as name, address, health data, medical history, test results, among others.

Information may be shared with Public Health England (PHE) or local health protection teams if test results detect a notifiable disease, including, measles, mumps, COVID-19, and others.

Medichecks will not transfer personal data to any country outside the European Union, except to those that have been deemed adequate under the General Data Protection Regulation.

SelfDecode vs Medichecks

1. SelfDecode delivers natural supplements, diet, and lifestyle suggestions based on your genes that you can implement right away. Medichecks offers health and wellness insights based on test results.
2. SelfDecode tells you why they make each recommendation so that you can understand the science behind the suggestion. Medichecks’ doctors will add commentary to test results to help customers better understand them.
3. SelfDecode prioritizes recommendations based on their analysis of all the relevant genes instead of one gene at a time (through reports). Medichecks does not prioritize their recommendations.
4. SelfDecode takes a holistic approach to give recommendations that are best for your genes AND the health topic. Medichecks offers tests that target specific health aspects.
5. SelfDecode has a team of over 60 highly skilled scientists, MDs, PhD, NDs, and software engineers working to make sure they deliver the most accurate and science-based health information. Medichecks has team of doctors who review the results.
6. SelfDecode is the most comprehensive and looks at more genes & SNPs (up to 83 million) to deliver the best analysis of genetic risks. Medichecks does not offer DNA testing.
7. SelfDecode’s LabTestAnalyzer gives insights into over 500 lab markers. While Medichecks’ overall number of lab markers analyzed is significant, each test only looks into a few biomarkers, and they must be purchased separately.
8. SelfDecode supports everything with peer-reviewed scientific studies in their research and checks for contradicting information. Medichecks claims the results are reviewed by qualified physicians.
9. SelfDecode never sells your data or gives it away. Medichecks states they do not sell or share personal information with third parties, but they may disclose it to Public Health England in some cases.

Comparisons

Medichecks Reviews

100 customers rated the company an average of 2.8 of 5 stars on Trustpilot. One customer stated that they did not think that the doctor’s comments were very helpful, while a few others complain that it took them a while to be able to schedule an appointment for a blood draw. Some users found the tests easy to perform.

Medichecks received an average of 4.7 of 5 stars on Feefo, based on the opinion of 2,509 customers. The consensus is that the service is easy to use and it delivers fast results. One user comments that they found the website difficult to use, while another states the service provided by Medichecks “lacks communication and direction”.

Alternatives to Medichecks

SelfDecode: The best health-focused DNA analysis that offers detailed health recommendations through personalized reports. Additionally, getting access to LabTestAnalyzer can offer insights based on over 500 lab markers.

Medichecks Review Summary

Medichecks presents a convenient way for people to keep track of their current health by offering a wide variety of lab tests. Customers have the option of collecting their blood samples from the comfort of their home, or by going to one of Medichecks’ partner clinics, but they cannot upload past results to receive health insights.

The company claims to use two well-known private laboratories in the UK for sample analysis, but they do not offer their services outside the country.

One thing that can be seen as a limitation is that each test offered by the company covers one specific aspect of health. While it can be a good option for customers who have specific concerns, it can become expensive to those who wish to have a more complete picture of their overall well-being. For example, a vitamin blood test that analyzes 13 biomarkers can cost over $800 with Medichecks.

Lab tests are great to help you understand your current health status, but if you want a more holistic approach to your health, you might need to look elsewhere. An alternative such as SelfDecode offers a DNA test that analyzes up to 83 million genetic variants to deliver diet, lifestyle, and supplement recommendations aimed at improving overall well-being. Additionally, upload your lab test results to LabTestAnalyzer or purchase lab tests from SelfDecode to receive personalized insights on over 500 lab markers and how to optimize them, all for less than $100 annually.

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