Abstract
Objective To determine and to analyze the theoretical and practical knowledge of Nursing professionals on indirect blood pressure measurement.Methods This cross-sectional study included 31 professionals of a coronary care unit (86% of the Nursing staff in the unit). Of these, 38.7% of professionals were nurses and 61.3% nurse technicians. A validated questionnaire was used to theoretical evaluation and for practice assessment the auscultatory technique was applied in a simulation environment, under a non-participant observation.Results To the theoretical knowledge of the stages of preparation of patient and environment, 12.9% mentioned 5-minute of rest, 48.4% checked calibration, and 29.0% chose adequate cuff width. A total of 64.5% of professionals avoided rounding values, and 22.6% mentioned the 6-month deadline period for the equipment calibration. On average, in practice assessment, 65% of the steps were followed. Lacks in knowledge were primary concerning lack of checking the device calibration and stethoscope, measurement of arm circumference to choose the cuff size, and the record of arm used in blood pressure measurement.Conclusion Knowledge was poor and had disparities between theory and practice with evidence of steps taken without proper awareness and lack of consideration of important knowledge during implementation of blood pressure measurement. Educational and operational interventions should be applied systematically with institutional involvement to ensure safe care with reliable values.
Highlights
IntroductionHypertension is an important public health concern and represents a main risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, which constitutes one of the most onerous disease that causes severe complication and presents sequelae.(1) Only half of hypertensive individuals have well controlled blood pressure (BP),(2) and a great difficult is seen toward adherence to drug therapy among hypertensive patients.(3)
Indirect blood pressure (BP) measurement by the auscultatory method is the most widely used(1) method, but it can present errors related to the environment, observer, patient and device itself, it is a simple and easy procedure to be conducted.(5) For this reason, hypertension guidelines describing steps for BP measurement reinforce the importance of obtaining reliable values to support adequate diagnosis and treatment of hypertension.(1,4,6,7)
To determine and analyze theoretical and practical knowledge of Nursing professionals related to the steps of BP measurement, the sample of this study was composed by 31 participants with mean age of 33.1 years
Summary
Hypertension is an important public health concern and represents a main risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, which constitutes one of the most onerous disease that causes severe complication and presents sequelae.(1) Only half of hypertensive individuals have well controlled blood pressure (BP),(2) and a great difficult is seen toward adherence to drug therapy among hypertensive patients.(3). The use of oscillometric device for BP measurement has been increasing gradually at outpatients units, residencies and, mainly, at hospitals.(6) The oscillometric technique reduces errors related to the observer,(5) and is influenced by steps for patient preparation. This technique contributes for ranges such as the use of inappropriate cuff size,(6) which deserves rigorous accomplishment in preparatory steps for BP measurement. This study is of great importance to support planning and implementation of actions and promote improvements in practice of indirect BP measurement for the scarcity of studies to support specific educational and operational interventions for safety and guarantee of reliable values to guide interdisciplinary clinical management
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