A training course for pharmacy employees significantly improved blood pressure measurement methodology, reducing incorrect back positioning from 62.5% to 6.3% (p=0.001).
Observational (n=246)
Yes
Does a theoretical-practical training course improve the methodology and accuracy of blood pressure measurements performed by pharmacy employees compared to institutional doctors?
Although training significantly improved the methodology of blood pressure measurement by pharmacy employees, their recorded BP values remained consistently higher than those measured by doctors, highlighting the need for controlled protocols in pharmacies.
Absolute Event Rate: 6.3% vs 62.5%
p-value: p=0.001
Objective: Blood pressure (BP) measurements recorded in pharmacies are an alternative method for obtaining BP values, although their usefulness in practice has shown contradictory results. The objective of our study was to evaluate the methodology and accuracy of the BP measurements recorded by pharmacy employees (PEs). Design and method: The study, conducted in four pharmacies, was divided into three stages. In the first, the PEs recorded the BP while observing the methodology used by doctors of our Institution (PIs): position of the back, feet, legs and arm, position and size of the cuff, talking during the measurement and fist placement. Immediately, the PIs repeated the measurement using the same automatic electronic blood pressure monitor. In the second stage, a theoretical-practical training course on the correct methodology for BP measurement was delivered online to the PEs, and they were informed of the mistakes observed in the first stage. In the third, the same method used in the first stage was repeated. Results: 246 subjects were included, 151 (61.4%) women, mean age 50.5 (±17.1) years. In the first stage, the mean values of systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and heart rate (HR) obtained by the PEs were significantly higher than those obtained by the PIs: (BP p=0.003 and HR: 73.8 p=0.001). In the third stage, the values obtained by the PEs were again higher than those recorded by the PIs. Regarding the methodology, the results obtained by the PEs improved significantly in relation to before and after the training course: bad positions of the back (from 62.5% to 6.3%, p=0.001), of the legs (from 40.6% to 0.9%, p=0.001), of the arm (from 37.5% to 4.0%, p=0.001) and of the cuff (from 30.0% to 4.0%, p=0.001) with improvement also in speech and in the placement of the fist. Conclusions: The results obtained reinforce the need for a controlled protocol for blood pressure measurements in pharmacies. The causes and clinical implications of our results require further analysis.
Ingaramo et al. (2026) conducted an observational in Blood pressure measurement (n=246). Theoretical-practical training course on correct BP measurement methodology vs. Pre-training (first stage) was evaluated on Bad position of the back during blood pressure measurement (p=0.001). A training course for pharmacy employees significantly improved blood pressure measurement methodology, reducing incorrect back positioning from 62.5% to 6.3% (p=0.001).