Blood pressure readings: you take them for every patient, every time, regardless of their reason for seeing you. Despite that, monitoring blood pressure might be the last thing on someone’s mind. You know that prolonged hypertension can lead to coronary artery disease, hypertensive heart disease, and even stroke.
But do your patients know? How do you get hypertension on their radar?
Consider playing this video from the American Heart Association:
Bet you that wasn’t the ending you were expecting!
Show Us Your (Blood Pressure) Numbers!
As a health clinician or provider, you can use this video to motivate and encourage your patients to check their blood pressure, while also sharing a laugh.
Who would benefit most from seeing this video?
- People who already know that hypertension is an issue, and need to be reminded to track their numbers
- People who are concerned about hypertension, and need to know where to get started
- People for whom hypertension is a blind spot, who need the gentle nudge
How does a video like this help you provide better care to your patients?
- Plants the seed in your patients’ minds that hypertension is something to talk to you about
- Gives them a framework as to what kinds of questions they should ask you (where am I vs. where should I be, what steps can I take) about their blood pressure
- Presents the subject matter in a lighthearted, judgement-free way (no scare tactics)
- Encourages them to track and share their progress in lowering their blood pressure
The better informed your patients are, the better your relationship with them will be.
In March of 2016, MountainWise will be rolling out a new hypertension prevention program under our MountainConnections initiative. We’re showing you this video to say, we want Western North Carolina to show us their numbers!