Knowledge of blood pressure measurement among a teaching hospital staff in a developing nation

Hypertension is a common and potentially serious disease and accurate measurement of blood pressure (BP) is important for its diagnosis and management. The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge of hospital staff on the basic principles of BP measurement. Consultants, junior doctors and nurses in a large teaching hospital in southern Saudi Arabia were requested to answer a questionnaire about the most important aspects pertaining to BP measurement. The overall response rate was about 70%. There was a wide diversity of responses reflecting a poor knowledge of some of the basic techniques of BP measurement. This included inconsistencies regarding the knowledge of cuff size, recording of diastolic BP, position of the arm and rate for deflating the cuff. Overall, 60% of the respondents had insufficient knowledge. Inaccurate BP measurement can seriously affect the diagnosis and management of the patient with this common disease. Hospital staff need to improve their knowledge about BP measurement, and teaching programmes about BP measurement should be developed as part of continuing education.