how does your facility take blood pressure

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when taking vitals, how many of you do it manually and how many do it with the machine?

as far as i know most students are taught to do it manually which i think is great

my only hosp experience when i was in labor was being hooked up to the machine and i HATED it

the nurses and midwives kept saying how high my bp was and the machine was making all those noises .....i am sure that raised it a bit !!!!!!!!!!

just wondering about the REAL WORLD of nursing

do you use the sphygmomonometer (sp?) or machine

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manually

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so do you have any hints or tips for the first timer ?

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Specializes in jack of all trades, master of none.

make sure you use the proper cuff size.

we use good ol' fashion sphygmomanometer

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Specializes in ER.

We do it both ways...but mostly automatic...

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We use the automatic cuff built in to the monitor. It has been YEARS since I have taken a manual BP. I'm not sure I remember how...:chuckle

j/k - I remember how :)

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when taking vitals, how many of you do it manually and how many do it with the machine?

I trust my ear alot more than the machine. The machine is good if they are available, but my experience has been that the machine can give false readings, high or low. If in doubt I always recheck manually. Pet peeve of mine: Nursing students who rely on the machine, they should always do their manually. It is a time for learning, and in my opinion, the machine is a time saving device.

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I agree.

The most accurate BP measurement is a manual one done by a properly trained person, using a mercury spygometer, everything else is downhill from there.

For speed of use, a handheld spyg is good, but remember to get it calibrated every 6 mos (JACHO). One big issue I see sometimes with this is that nurses (more usually CNA's) don't use properly sized cuffs -- which can cause a major difference in BP.

As for automatics, I really think (even with callibration) they should be restricted to contineous monitoring as ordered by physician (ie.. icu pt. that the physician wants to make sure BP doesn't drop precipitiously). Maybe at night if the patient needs a q2 BP -- for purposes of patient comfort. I don't think they have any place in routine use.

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The most accurate BP measurement is a manual one done by a properly trained person, using a mercury spygometer, everything else is downhill from there.

Actually, the automatic cuffs built into the monitors, like are used in any ICU - including our NICU - match up VERY closely to the pressures we get off the A-line, which is about the most accurate BP measurement you can get. I don't know if the portable Dynamaps are as sensitive as the monitor cuffs, but just because it is automatic and not manual does not necessarily mean it is not accurate.

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

machine. if it doesn't seem right or is grossly out of range I double check manually before doing interventions.

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Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

automatic, but backed up manually for variances, or really high or low numbers. And yes, cuff size is so very important. More so than even whether it's a machine or manual method you are using. The way you do it, properly, is very important.

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how do I get my personal, thrift-shop acquired BP cuff tested or calibrated?

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