Blood pressure is the pressure in your arteries – the vessels (tubes) that carry blood from the heart to the brain and the rest of the body. A certain amount of pressure is needed to get the blood moving around the body. The pressure naturally goes up and down throughout the day and night, but when the overall blood pressure is always high, you need to do something about it. High blood pressure, or hypertension, rarely has noticeable symptoms. But if untreated, it increases the risk of developing serious health problems such as heart attacks and strokes.
As part of the wider cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention programme, Health Innovation North West Coast is supporting local work to reduce hypertension and support primary care colleagues to optimise care for people with high blood pressure. Uncontrolled hypertension plays a key role in driving disparities in CVD health outcomes and premature mortality, making it an ideal target population to help reduce inequalities and unnecessary difference in care.
Current Programmes
Blood Pressure Quality Improvement
The Blood Pressure Quality Improvement (BPQI) Toolkit is a collaboratively and locally developed quality improvement package that embeds into GP systems (EMIS and System One). Health Innovation North West Coast developed the tool to support partners in the North West Coast to improve management of hypertension.
Aim: To support general practice teams to deliver best practice through dashboards, consultation templates and more.
Population Health Blood Pressure Optimisation Support Cheshire & Merseyside
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains one of the leading causes of death in the UK. It is estimated that 50% of heart attacks and strokes are associated with high blood pressure (hypertension). NHS England (NHSE) has targeted healthcare providers to ensure patients with a GP recorded diagnosis of hypertension are optimally treated.
Aim: To support practices across Cheshire and Merseyside to identify hypertension patients and improve their treatment to target rate.
Further Resources
The Cheshire and Merseyside ‘Happy Hearts’ and the Lancashire and South Cumbria ‘Healthy Hearts’ websites include blood pressure and CVD prevention information and links for patients and professionals.
BPO Resources - for clinicians
- Cardiovascular Risk Score Patient Information Leaflet
- NICE Hypertension decision aid
- Happy Hearts
- Quality and Outcomes Framework – CVD Prevention
- Hypertension in adults – NICE Guidance
Patient Direct Resources
Previous programmes
Delivering BP@Home in the North West Coast
Home blood pressure monitoring (BP@Home) – was launched in the North West Coast and across England. The process enables patients to remotely record their blood pressure without visiting their doctor. In the podcast, a former specialist cardiac nurse and lead for the programme at HINWC is joined by a GP in Cheshire – and clinical lead for C&M – who explains how the programme is already paying off.
AQUA Evaluation of Cheshire and Merseyside BP Optimisation Programme
Health Innovation North West Coast has supported an evaluation into a programme to tackle high blood pressure.