Home Blood Pressure Monitoring. Promoting Patient Self-Measurement - 2023

About the course
Home blood pressure monitoring is a proven intervention to enhance the accuracy and reproducibility of blood pressure measurement, and the development and implementation of a BP measurement training course can empower patients to self-control their BP and ultimately reduce patient-related clinical inertia and improve BP control.

The course on Home Blood Pressure Monitoring-Promoting patient self-measurement highlights (1) the significance of increased blood pressure, (2) the importance of proper blood pressure measurement technique, (3) the step-by-step process to properly measure blood pressure at home, (4) the factors that can lead to measurement error, (5) why to measure blood pressure at home and (6) how to interpret home blood pressure numbers, including when to follow-up and when to seek immediate action.

It consists of an interactive module with an illustrated video, an illustrated guide, a printable 7-day HBPM log, and a narrative evaluation. At the end of the modules, the student will be able to download the certificate issued by the Virtual Campus for Public Health (VCPH) of PAHO/WHO and validated by the World Hypertension League, International Society of Hypertension, Resolve to Save Lives initiative, Hypertension Canada, and the Québec Society of Vascular Sciences.

General objectives
Educating people in HBPM using a step-by-step approach, highlighting proper technique, person and environment preparation and the use of BPMDs clinically validated.

Audience
This course is intended for patients and the public with possible or confirmed hypertension diagnoses; PHC providers, with emphasis on nurses, medical and nurse assistants, pharmacists, and nutritionists, are encouraged to take the course and educate their patients on HBPM. In addition, community healthcare workers and social workers are recommended to embed the course and make it available for their patients.

Course structure
Overall, it consists of an interactive module with:
(1) an illustrated video
(2) a link to online listings of properly validated (accurate) automated blood pressure measuring devices
(3) an illustrated guide on how to perform home blood pressure measurement
(4) a printable 7-day HBPM log
(5) a final quiz to test knowledge

Course format
The course will be placed on the platform of the Virtual Campus for Public Health of PAHO/WHO, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in a self-administered modality according to the own participant pace, individually or as part of professional programs and educational meetings in the workplace. The course issues a certificate with 1 academic hour that can be downloaded automatically after passing the exam and filling the PAHO’s Virtual Campus survey.

Acknowledgements
This course has been partially funded by Resolve to Save Lives, an initiative of Vital Strategies, and by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States.

Sponsoring organizations
World Hypertension League
International Society of Hypertension
STRIDE BP
Hypertension Canada
Lancet Commission on Hypertension Group
Québec Society of Vascular Sciences
Resolve to Save Lives