Changes in nurses' blood pressure and heart rate while communicating

Cardiovascular responses of nurses were measured during two communication tasks. In the first experiment 40 nurses' blood pressures and heart rates were taken pre, during, and post change-of-shift report. In the second experiment, 30 nurses spoke to an individual nurse and to a group of nurses. Blood pressures and heart rates were recorded pre, during, and post speech in both conditions. Analyses of variances showed that speaking levels of all cardiovascular parameters were higher (p less than .001) than resting levels in both experiments. Blood pressures and heart rates were higher (p less than .0001) in front of a group than in front of an individual. These findings extend previous work that has shown communication alters blood pressure.