The Value of Home Blood Pressure Monitoring
(July 16, 2014) In 2008, the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association (PCNA), the American Heart Association (AHA), and the American Society of Hypertension (ASH) published “Call to Action on Use and Reimbursement for Home Blood Pressure Monitoring” calling for the routine use of home blood pressure monitoring (HBPM) in addition to traditional blood pressure measurement in the medical office setting.
This week, a cost-benefit analysis of HBPM was published, demonstrating the value of HBPM from a health insurance company’s perspective. Depending on insurance plans and the age of the patient, estimated net savings associated with the use of home blood pressure monitoring range from $33 to $166 per member in the first year, and between $415 and $1,364 when looking at the long-term. Return on investment ranges from $0.85 to $3.75 per dollar invested in the first year and from $7.50 to $19.34 per dollar in the long run.
“Incorporation of HBPM as part of the diagnosis and management of high blood pressure is a great tool – one that importantly also serves to engage the patient as a partner is his own care.” says PCNA board member Nancy Houston-Miller RN BSN, nurse at the Stanford University School of Medicine and an author of the 2008 call to action paper. “In the current health care environment, we are all seeking to use evidence-based strategies that have proven value. The evidence has long confirmed the importance of HBPM. This analysis helps to confirm its value from a financial perspective ”
As an advocate for the diagnosis, treatment and control of hypertension, a major risk factor for heart attack, stroke, and heart failure, PCNA has developed an array of tools to assist the clinician in educating the patient, one of which, a brochure entitled How Do You Measure Up? even includes a tape measure to help a patient determine the correct size blood pressure cuff. This easy to read booklet, complete with charts, checklists, and quizzes, helps patients understand high blood pressure, and what they, in partnership with their health care provider, can do to help it.
This brochure, and an associated one-page downloadable information sheet, along with other useful patient and clinician education tools can be found at pcna.net.
PCNA has established itself as the premier organization of nursing professionals dedicated to the prevention of cardiac and other vascular diseases throughout the lifespan. PCNA’s mission includes developing and promoting nurses as leaders in this field and supporting comprehensive risk reduction strategies for individuals and populations across the lifespan. PCNA takes pride in supporting leadership, advocacy, lifelong learning and empowerment of the nursing community. To learn more about PCNA and their continuing education, complimentary patient education tools, Annual Symposium and more, visit PCNA.net or join them on facebook.com/heartnurses or twitter @heartnurses.
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