Pharmacy Blood Pressure Check Service

About the Pharmacy Blood Pressure Check Service

Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is often described as a ‘silent killer’ and affects an estimated 32% of adults. As the condition rarely has any symptoms, approximately 3 in 10 of these adults remain undiagnosed, equating to 4.2 million people in England.=

There are often ‘no clues’ as to whether you have high blood pressure but there is an easy way to find out whether your blood pressure is high and that’s to have a simple test at your local community pharmacy.

Who is eligible for the Pharmacy Blood Pressure Check Service?

All men and women aged 40 and living in England are eligible to have their blood pressure checked using this service. The procedure is free, quick, non-invasive and you do not need to book in advance.

You will not be able to use the service if you:

• already have high blood pressure
• have had your blood pressure checked by a healthcare professional in the past 6 months

What to expect

The pharmacist, or member of the pharmacy team, will wrap a blood pressure cuff around your upper arm and measure your blood pressure. Once the test is complete, they will let you know the result.

The advice you receive next will depend on the result of the test. You may be given:

• advice to support healthy living
• a blood pressure monitor to take home with you and return later
• direction to go and see your GP

Your blood pressure reading will be added to your GP health record if you are registered with a GP surgery. It will not be shared with anyone else unless your blood pressure is very high or very low and you need urgent medical help.

Find a pharmacy that offers free blood pressure checks

Click the button below to find the nearest pharmacy to you that offers the Pharmacy Blood Pressure Check Service.