To think this nurse was unprofessional?

[ThisCoolOP]

So I went for an appointment at my GP surgery to try and verify the accuracy of two home blood pressure monitors we have in our house. The two monitors give virtually identical readings to each other for everyone in our family - but for my sister one reads 10 - 15 points lower than the other on thr systolic number.

During the appointment, my sister attempted to explain the situation and that she wanted to compare both machines against a manual reading. The nurse immediately told her to "just bin" one of the machines without any attempt to even compare it

The nurse then proceeded to only check one of the machines (the one that reads lower). When the machine displayed a reading of 150/100, she then performed a "manual check" and literally immediately stated "yeah 150/100". Might be just me, but this rapid confirmation seems like the nurse was simply just re-stating the reading she had seen on the machines screen (literally told me her reading was the exact same number) rather than conducting a genuine, independent manual verification. Her pre-judgement of which machine was correct was evident from the beginning, as she refused to consider checking the second machine, despite my clear explanation of the discrepancy of both machines for me, but identical readings for the rest of the family

As a result, I was left in the exact same position I was in before the appointment. I actually suffer from anxiety and came back in tears at how sharp and unhelpful she had been, and because it seemed she had made her mind up there and then she was only checking one machine and that was the correct one (despite them giving the same readings for everyone else), i don't trust what she told me at all

At my surgery they offer to check your home blood pressure monitor to make sure it's accurate. I fainted a couple of times last year because my BP was low and was asked to bring my monitor in so that it could be properly calibrated. And it was a nurse appointment, not a GP appointment. But my SIL wasn't involved and I don't suffer from health anxiety.

I think you were being unreasonable to use the practice nurse's time for this. That's not what she's there for.

Access a pharmacy if you need a BP check. That will allow you to verify the more accurate machine.

It doesn't sound like the nurse was rude.

Why does your sister have two machines and why were you at the appointment? I would think they give one machine, she measures using it for 7 days and if she's not sure of her machine she takes hers to a chemist.

To your question, no I don't think the nurse sounded unprofessional at all.

A bag, it was 2 machines! And when one machine is reading at very high levels and the other low?? Hardly bang out of order

They are our own machines. Not ones the surgery has given!

This sounds mad, why check with 2 machines in the first place? Just pick one and use it.

It's completely sensible and appropriate to say - "my BP keeps reading 170/100 can I have an appointment for a review?"

It's completely stupid to say - "when my sister takes her BP with 2 machines one tends to read lower than the other, but it seems fine for me, can you check my machines out?"

She didn’t do that.
She filled in an online form explaining the problem and the surgery made an appointment.
It’s not op’s or her dsis’s fault that an appointment was made.

Why are you sometimes posting in the first person and in some pretending to be your sister?

To get your blood pressure tested and a proper assessment, yes, but NOT to get your machine checked. That absolutely is not the nurse's job. That's a total misuse of the nurse's time and the receptionist probably couldn't understand what on earth you were asking for. For those who struggle to get appointments, this kind of thing is infuriating.

It just won't have made any sense because it's such a ridiculous thing to goto the Surgery about, they'll have just understood it as a concerned about BP so offered a nurse appointment for BP review.

Are both of your machines the same brand?

I had an old machine (a chemist brand) that gave me worryingly high readings that were different to those from my Omron monitor. I eventually discovered by googling that years ago it had failed a Which type comparison, so with relief I threw it out. What was interesting was that the discrepancy the testers found was much greater for certain BP values - the lower the person's BP, the closer the readings from that machine were to those of better machines. The inaccuracy was much worse for higher values.

If I were you I would buy a new Omron machine that does best of three readings, and see how that compares to both your current machines.

I completely sympathise op. I have the same issue, high blood pressure, and calibrating the measuring device is hard. It's a basic principle of measurement that you need to be sure the device is accurate. Anyone who thinks otherwise isn't worth listening to.
I take 3 readings and use the middle one, and have a certified device. You could take yours to a pharmacy and ask them to measure, then do it again with yours and if they're wildly out, bin yours.

The surgery has asked for readings, I had the same thing. They obviously need a reliable reading. Checking it is a reasonable thing to do otherwise the GP won't get the information he needs. It wasn't a GP appointment it was a nurse being asked to check blood pressure

wasting valuable appointments, disgusting behaviour !

How is it mad exactly?

Okay so we pick the machine reading very high, she gets given BP medication based on that but then it turns out the machine reading low is actually correct and in turn the BP medication then knocks her too low?

Or we pick the machine reading low and it then turns out the one reading very high is correct so we fill in the low figures and then they don't treat as we've given low figures

Not see the problem?????

Hardly disgusting behaviour from when we filled the online portal in and were given the appointment!

10-15 points difference does not get you from too high to too low. It’s really not that big a deal.

In that case, I think you are both being very silly. She should use one, and if she wants a manual check with a nurse to confirm or because the readings were high, fine. Asking the nurse to act as a medical technician in terms of going further than take a manual reading from your sister isn't fair.

As it it, the nurse did as asked, confirmed the reading with the first one and sent you on you way.

No, she wasn't unprofessional.

So, say, five people took their blood pressure reading on both of the machines and got similar readings on each, but then your sister got different readings on each and so you jump to the conclusion that one of the machines being wrong? That is not logical.

There is another thread running with OP complaining about receptionists triaging, one poster said people were sensible enough to be able to know if they needed a doctor, pharmacist, nurse etc.

Clearly not, judging by this!

You need to get them recalibrated

You didn't waste an appointment if they didn't think one was needed you wouldn't have been given one

Is her first reading always higher though? It might be health anxiety if it's consistent

Hi, just given your comment the love reaction as you've put it in to words better than I have obviously done :(

Problem is if we do as someone else said and just pick one machine

If we go with the machine reading very high and it turns out the machine reading low is correct, they then treat based on the very high figures it could knock bp too low then

And if we go with the other machine, and they then don't treat because the figures we have given are normal and it turns out instead it is very high and actually needed treatment

Didn't think it was as unreasonable as some people in here are suggesting :( and the fact the appointment was given to us after explaining on the online portal and people are saying disgusting behaviour from us :(

All this “we” is odd! Can’t your sister do anything alone?

Sorry it makes no odds how many machines. It's not their job and if everyone did what you do nobody unwell would ever see a medic!

????? I've not opened another thread!