Did you know you can buy a blood pressure monitor for as little as £15 from your local pharmacy? Home blood pressure monitoring can be very beneficial, but we know not everyone may be able to afford this. However, you may still be able to loan a monitor from your general practice. If you can, having a blood pressure monitor at home will make it easier to know what your blood pressure is and monitor how it changes over time.
You can ask a health professional to show you how to monitor your blood pressure at home and make it even easier to stay on top of your health.
How to monitor your blood pressure at home
Having a blood pressure monitor at home simplifies checking your blood pressure. Home measurements offer advantages over clinic readings, such as avoiding the ‘white coat effect’. This means that a ‘one-off’ reading taken at your doctor’s surgery or the hospital may not accurately reflect your real blood pressure.
Home blood pressure readings can avoid these problems and can help your GP team to:
- establish whether you have high blood pressure
- decide if blood pressure medication is required
- decide whether any changes to blood pressure medication are required
- see how well your blood pressure medication is controlling your blood pressure
- further investigate people whose blood pressure is hard to control.
Monitoring your blood pressure at home can also help you to see how the medication you are taking is working and gain a better understanding of your condition.
In the below video local Nurse Practitioner Dawn Sargent, discusses the importance of home monitoring and demonstrates accurate reading techniques.
What is BP@Home
BP@Home is a scheme run by NHS Mid and South Essex to support patients to monitor their blood pressure at home.
The scheme is for those that have been diagnosed with hypertension and have been asked by a healthcare professional to monitor their blood pressure within the comfort of their own home and to feed the results of their blood pressure checks to their GP team to take appropriate action.
Watch the video below to find out more about BP@Home.
Download and print the BP@Home diary below, to record your blood pressure readings. Write the numbers exactly as they appear on the monitor screen – do not round them up or down. Use the comments section to note anything that could have affected your reading, such as feeling unwell or changes in your medication. You do not need to record your pulse or heart rate unless your healthcare professional has specifically requested it.
Once you have completed seven days of readings, share the document with your GP team so it can be added to your health record. Your GP team will review the readings and inform you if any further action is needed.