Patient experiences of hypertension management during COVID-19
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Exploring the patient experience of remote hypertension management in Scotland during COVID-19: A qualitative study
IRAS ID
299323
Contact name
Janet Hanley
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Edinburgh Napier University
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 5 months, 1 days
Research summary
Hypertension is a leading preventable risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and affects approximately 1.13 billion people worldwide. As well as being a risk factor for CVD, hypertension has been linked to increased risk of COVID-19 infection and worse associated outcomes. Underlying hypertension puts individuals at a two-fold increased risk of COVID-19 related mortality. Additionally those with hypertension and not receiving treatment were found to have significantly higher risk of COVID-19 related mortality compared with those treated with anti-hypertensives. Diagnosis and effective management for hypertension therefore plays an important role reducing both CVD and COVID-19 related adverse outcomes.
Telemonitoring technology can help engage patients, facilitate early diagnosis and provide ongoing self-management of chronic conditions. For patients with uncontrolled blood pressure, trial evidence demonstrated telemonitoring produced clinically significant reductions (an average of 4.3mmHg) in daytime systolic and diastolic ambulatory pressures. Subsequent implementation study (Scale-Up BP) concluded that a telemonitoring intervention to manage hypertension in primary care is feasible at scale and results in reductions in BP similar to those in large UK trials and with little impact on clinician workload. NHS Scotland has now begun to embed BP telemonitoring for routine hypertension management within primary care. However long-term outcome data to further evidence clinical success has been drastically interrupted by COVID-19 altering the way people have been, and continue to be able to access healthcare.Therefore this exploratory qualitative study aims to understand the patient experience of hypertension service delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic, with specific focus on the use of remote telemonitoring technology. Due to not all primary care centres within NHS Lothian having yet implemented BP telemonitoring this study also provides an opportunity to study a comparable non-BP telemonitoring population.
REC name
East Midlands - Leicester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/EM/0148
Date of REC Opinion
30 Jun 2021
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion