26th August 2026
PocDoc, the UK's leading digital health diagnostics company, has partnered with Unity Health, a five-site GP practise in the Thames Valley, to help identify patients at high risk of developing CVD across the region.
The scale of undetected risk in the local community was highlighted earlier this month.
On 6 August, PocDoc screened farmers and agricultural workers using its groundbreaking Healthy Heart Check at the Thame Sheep Fair which is located in the same market town as one of Unity Health's surgeries. Agricultural workers consistently rank low for engagement with preventative healthcare while carrying elevated risk. Of those screened at the Fair, 88% had high cholesterol and three quarters had not had a CVD check in the last five years.
The screening was delivered free through PocDoc's 100x100 Fund, which funds 100 community screening projects across the UK every year.
Thames Valley ICB has identified CVD prevention in rural communities as a priority. This partnership brings that preventative approach into general practice, giving Unity Health the capacity to actively identify high risk patients rather than waiting for it to present itself.
From 1 September 2026, Unity Health will have unlimited use of the PocDoc Healthy Heart Check across its surgeries in Brill, Chinnor, Long Crendon, Princes Risborough and Thame.
It is the first partnership of its kind for PocDoc, giving a GP practise unlimited CVD testing under a single annual agreement, meaning the decision to test can be based on patient need rather than the cost of an individual test.
Each Healthy Heart Check delivers a full cholesterol profile, body mass index, NHS Heart Age and a ten-year cardiovascular risk assessment from a single finger-prick sample, with results in minutes through the patient's own smartphone. Results are returned to Unity Health through GP Connect, ensuring the GP record remains the single source of truth.
Both partners have committed to a full joint evaluation, which will be published and shared with the wider system.
Steve Roest, CEO and Co-Founder at PocDoc, said:
"Cardiovascular disease remains one of the biggest health challenges facing communities across the UK, yet many cases could be prevented through earlier detection and intervention.
"Our mission is to make clinically validated health testing more accessible, convenient and affordable for everyone. By partnering with Unity Health and removing the cost-per-test barrier, we're helping primary care teams identify cardiovascular risk earlier and give more people the opportunity to take action at the earliest possible stage."
Vanessa Woodley, Managing Director at Unity Health, said:
"Primary care has an important role to play in identifying cardiovascular risk earlier, but many people who are at risk do not feel unwell and may not come forward for testing.
"This partnership gives us a new way to proactively identify cardiovascular risk across our patient population. We know that certain groups in our community are at particularly high risk, so this is incredibly important. It will help us find those who may otherwise go undetected and ensure they get further support before serious conditions develop."
