title: Self-reported physician adherence to guidelines for measuring blood pressure.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Diagnosis of hypertension, treatment, and follow-up depend on accurate measurement. This research study attempted to determine whether family physicians are all measuring blood pressure (BP) according to Canadian guidelines.
  
  
  METHODS
  A short survey was mailed to all physicians within the Department of Family Medicine, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifty-one percent of the surveys were completed and returned. Eleven of the recommendations were followed "always or most of the time." BP is measured manually by 63% of the respondents, and the most frequent barrier to following the recommendations was time.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of the survey indicated that measurement of BP according to Canadian Hypertension Education Program recommendations was felt to be important and conducted in most cases, but there is room for improvement.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. rcdickson@sympatico.ca
authors.forename: Robert C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Dickson
authors.forename: Kathryn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gaebel
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zizzo
authors.forename: Ieva
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Neimanis
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bridge
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Corsini
authors.forename: Cindy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Goebel
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Woods
mesh_terms: D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000592:standards*; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care / Q000592:standards; D005194:Family Practice; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D009864:Ontario; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires