CPD module: Diagnostics

After completing this module, you should be more aware of:

• the expectation on community pharmacy to be providing blood pressure readings;
• how to find the brachial artery;
• the need for standardising the process for measuring blood pressure in a clinical setting;
• factors which may lead to an incorrect measurement;
• core principles to improve the accuracy of a blood pressure measurement in the clinic;
• the British and Irish Hypertensive Society guidelines for taking blood pressure measurements;
• differences in techniques between automated and manual readings;
• the BIHS role in validating and recommending BP monitors;
• expected frequency for recalibrating BP monitors;
• the potential advantages of 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring;
• the ways cuffless monitors work and views on their accuracy;
• how pulse oximeters work and factors that can affect their accuracy.