health risk appraisal


appraisal

 [ah-prāz´al] the act of evaluating something.health risk appraisal a systematic evaluation of factors in an individual, family, community, or other aggregate that might lead to illness or other health problems.performance appraisal the evaluation of an employee or student, comparing his or her job-related behavior with a standard of expectations for performance.

health risk ap·prais·al

(helth risk ă-prā'zăl) A method of describing a person's chance of falling ill or dying of a specified condition, based on actuarial calculations that allow for known exposure to risk; expressed as the expected age at which death or disease will occur, and intended as a way of drawing the person's attention to the probable consequences of risk behavior.

health risk appraisal

An analysis of all that is known about a person's life and health, including personal and family medical history, occupation, and social environment, in order to estimate his or her risk of disability or death as compared with statistical averages. The data used for comparison vary with the patient's age, sex, ethnic background, and income. Also integral to the analysis are the skill of the evaluator and the sensitivity and specificity of the tests used in the evaluation.

Actions that could modify health risks include: 1) talking with the patient about alcohol or drug use; obesity; regular exercise, and the use of seat belts while driving; 2) assessing patient blood glucose, blood pressure, and lipid status; and 3) performing screening tests in appropriate populations, such as mammography in women over the age of 40 or colon cancer screening tests in patients over 50.