Lloydspharmacy has launched a new web tool which allows people to work out how many of their work colleagues is carrying a sexually transmitted disease, drinks too much alcohol or is depressed.

The ‘Chances Are…’ Health Calculator, developed by community pharmacy chain Lloydspharmacy, is designed to stimulate debate and make health risks more relevant by applying nationally representative data to the workplace.

“People have become rather de-sensitised to national statistics,” said Andy Murdock, Governance and Pharmacy Relations Director of Lloydspharmacy. “When you hear that 15 per cent of the population is in danger of developing diabetes, it’s a bit meaningless, but when you discover, for example, in an office of 50 people, eight will be pre-diabetic and 10 of the men will experience some form of erectile dysfunction after turning 40, you’re more likely to sit up and take notice.

“That’s why we have launched this online tool. We hope it will be used in workplaces up and down the country, get people talking and encourage them to think about their own risk factors and what they can do to reduce their chances of developing lifestyle related diseases.”

The calculator asks visitors to provide information about the type of workplace they are employed in, along with the gender split and age profile of their workmates. It then raids its database to calculate how many colleagues have Chlamydia, how many men are likely to develop erectile dysfunction, how many are likely to suffer a stroke, how many have raised cholesterol, how many are hazardous drinkers and much more.

In many cases information is provided about the condition or the issue and guidance is provided about what can be done to reduce risk factors.

Via EPR Network
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