Various approaches for determining storage medium health. For example, a storage device is disclosed that includes a storage medium and a data processing circuit. The data processing circuit receives a data set derived from the storage medium. The data processing circuit includes a data detector circuit, a data decoder circuit, and a health detection circuit. The data detector circuit receives the data set and provides a detected output. The data decoder circuit receives a derivative of the detected output and provides a decoded output. The health detection circuit receives an indication of a number of times that the data set is processed through the combination of the data detector circuit and the data decoder circuit, and generates an indirect health status of the storage medium using the number of times that the data set is processed through the combination of the data detector circuit and the data decoder circuit.