KYBP Day 2015

Members of the Rotary Club of Billericay aided by volunteer nurses, Juliet, Faith and 'Cepta, returned to the Billericay Waitrose store on Saturday 18th April for the 4th year running, to offer free Blood Pressure tests to the public, and provide information and advice on keeping it under control.  It was all part of the Annual “Know Your Blood Pressure” Day held in collaboration with the Stroke Association and Rotary Clubs across the country.

High blood pressure remains the single biggest risk factor for stroke, contributing to over half of strokes in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.  Know Your Blood Pressure day is about raising awareness of the link between high blood pressure and stroke.

In 2014, Rotary GBI and Stroke Association organised over 400 events across the UK. In the same year, Rotary GBI was honoured with a Special Recognition Award by Stroke Association for their long-term support of the Know Your Blood Pressure campaign.Dr James Logan, Channel 4’s own TV Doctor, presented the Life After Stroke Award to Rotary GBI at a prestigious awards ceremony hosted by Baroness Karren Brady. 

People say the funniest things.

When asked if they would like to have a free blood Pressure test, most people were only too delighted to take advantage of the offer.  But some…. well what do you think?  Here are some of the responses we got!

“I don’t want to spoil my weekend by learning what it is”!!!!!
“I have already had it taken, five years ago and it was OK then”!
“I just need to go to the WC first”
But others had come in especially to have their blood pressure taken because they had seen the preview piece in Billericay Gazette.

Juliet was the only nurse on duty from 10.00 until 12.00, and tested a continuous stream of the public – we only had an empty chair for about 3 minutes in the whole 2 hours.  Then Faith and ‘Cepta arrived to take over, and the volume of people really increased – thankfully we had the two nurses there to handle the volume.

These events can play a big role in reducing strokes across the country. The Stroke Association says high blood pressure is far more common than one would think.

The Results

We tested a total of 87 people, of which 74% were female.  In terms of age, 71% were aged 60-86, 3% were over 85, 14% were 45-59, and the rest were between 15-44.  Most importantly, we identified six people who needed to see their GPs urgently, and a further 32 who needed to see their GP for a more routine follow-up.

A big thank you to Waitrose for making the space available and hosting us during the day. 
Thanks also to the three nurses who gave their time freely to conduct these tests, and to all the members of the club and their partners who helped make the event a success.