The national buzz around “meaningful use” of interactive healthcare technologies such as electronic health records has focused primarily on financial benefits to the healthcare community. But what does it mean for the regular Joe, or Jane?

To find out more about technology and the future of your healthcare, the Post spoke with Wayne Oliver, Vice President, Washington DC-based Center for Health Transformation (healthtransformation.net), and Ryan Sorrels of global technology company NCR (ncr.com), one of CHT’s 100 member companies.

“People have come to expect easy access to the airline and banking industries in their daily transactions,” notes Sorrels.  “Healthcare is certainly more complex than checking in for a flight. But we now have interactive technology solutions to address that complexity in meaningful ways, making it easy for patients to directly communicate with providers and access information.“

“Meaningful use” is a key component of the Health Reform Bill passed last spring. The bill contains federal stimulus funds designed to accelerate adoption of new healthcare technologies.

“Meaningful use is the government’s terminology within the stimulus package to determine whether physicians, hospitals, and other providers would be eligible for enhanced reimbursement,” explains CHT’s Wayne Oliver. “To qualify for some funds, doctors must comply with a specific group of objectives to demonstrate that they are meaningfully using technology to advance patient care.”

Requests from doctors requesting information on storing medical records online have jumped 36 percent since passage of the Reform Bill, according to Medefile.com, a healthcare technology and services organization.

Advocates emphasize, however, that innovative technologies from NCR and other groups will improve healthcare for everyone, even should federal regulations change.

“Many providers are looking at technologies to streamline the processes that happen within their offices,” Sorrels points out. “But the message from patients should be: Don’t stop your electronic processes at the front desk. Transactions that happen between the facility and the patient’s home need to be part of the conversation, too.”

And that’s where medical consumers—you—can get involved.

“For patients, the first step in helping move our healthcare system into the 21^st century is having a conversation with their physician,” advises Oliver. “Talk about his or her plans to use technology that creates an environment in which patients and providers can better interact, and in a way that enhances care.”

Questions for your provider may include: Do you intend to utilize an electronic health record (EHR) system? Are you considering creating your own website to securely post lab results? Will the website provide personal health records (PHRs) for your patients? Are you willing to communicate via e-mail?

Here are 6 ways that self-service and kiosk-based technologies could change your future doctor visits.

1. Book Your M.D.: Access a secure web link to schedule an appointment.
2. Sidestep Paperwork: Use a check-in kiosk at the doctor’s office to electronically enter and verify demographic information, sign consent forms and complete health-related questionnaires.
3. Access Lab Results: Obtain test findings via a computer or mobile device.
4. eChat with Your M.D.: Exchange secure electronic messages rather than making phone calls.
5. Pay Your Bills: Log online to view payment histories and settle outstanding balances.
6. Pre-Authorize Payments: Expedite bill payments by pre-authorizing a credit card for co-payments and balances not covered by your insurance provider.

Stimulus Funds and Health Care The Saturday Evening Post

“I have a few questions,” Susana interjected, stopping the pediatrician in her tracks. “What do I do for her?”

“Give her some Tylenol,” she advised. “She’ll be fine.”

“How much Tylenol do I give her?” the new mother asked.

“What is her body weight?” the doctor said, scanning Sofia’s chart.

“I don’t know—no one in 
your office weighed her or took her temperature,” she replied. “Will you please pay more attention to this situation and tell me what’s wrong with my daughter? I need information.”

Because Susana spoke up, her daughter got the attention she needed, and Susana got the information and guidance that she, as a paying customer and concerned mother, had a right to expect from the doctor. But not everyone feels comfortable doing that, even if they should.

Being wise medical consumers means choosing medical partners we can communicate with effectively and trust. When it comes to protecting our health, we have to be sure that we are getting what we pay for. An engaged, concerned, and skilled doctor is the best health care investment we can hope to find.

Illustrated by Pablo Bernasconi

Let’s Talk

Perhaps the most important step to becoming a smart medical consumer is the process of finding and choosing the right GP or family physician. That person will be your closest medical partner and will play an important role in helping you make other decisions about your health care management and practitioners. If 
you are in the market for a new physician, ask your friends and co-workers for recommendations, and go online to find out what doctors within that specialty are located in your area. When you’ve found one you want to “interview,” call the office and schedule an introductory appointment, so you can go 
in, share your medical history, and get a sense of the doctor’s attitudes and approach to medicine. (Tell the scheduling assistant specifically what 
you want to do during the appointment so you have adequate time.)

As with any interview, little things count: The office workers, nurses, and med techs should be friendly and helpful; the office should be clean; the doctor should be open and willing to talk with you about your concerns and interests. Keep it relatively simple, but use your time to determine how well this physician’s working approach suits your own. Does he or she communicate with patients via e-mail when appropriate? Is this doctor comfortable discussing information you’ve gathered? What hospital affiliations does the practice maintain? What regular screening tests does he recommend for someone of your age group? Talk about your major health concerns and listen closely to the answers you receive. If you’re comfortable with the initial meeting, schedule a full physical and use that experience to cement or break the deal with this doc.

Partner with Your Physician

Doctors are not infallible, nor should we expect them to be. Like the rest of us, they occasionally will be distracted and disengaged, and they won’t always seek our active collaboration in the doctor-patient relationship. It is therefore our responsibility to speak up, ask questions, and insist that our voices are heard when we have concerns about our treatment.

We don’t need a degree in medicine to partner with our doctors. We can start with some very simple steps. First, we should realize that our medical history is our business, not just our doctors’ “property.” Most of us know that we should maintain a list of our medications, including dosages and directions for use, along with any alternative health practices and supplements. In addition, many patient advocates advise that we keep track of our medical records, requesting copies from our doctors for our own safekeeping. That way, we know exactly what information is available to new physicians and consulting specialists—and we have the important information we need if we want to do our own research. Further, with copies of our test results in hand, we can be sure that the correct name appears on them and that there wasn’t a mix-up at the lab.

Be Your Own Records Keeper

Illustrated by Pablo Bernasconi

Every time you visit a new doctor, you’re asked to complete a personal health information form that lists family medical history, your history of diseases, illnesses, injuries, hospitalizations, allergies, and so on. You’re also asked to complete a “release of information” form, which enables your previous doctor to release health records to the new doctor’s office. With all this information floating around, you might wonder why anyone would need to keep his or her own personal health record. But, according to the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), everyone should do so. That way, no matter when or where we need health care, the medical provider we consult has access to a full and detailed medical history.

These records can be in written or electronic form, stored in a file folder, on a computer hard drive or disk, on a portable USB removable flash drive, or through an online service. The AHIMA maintains a Web site (My Personal Health Record, myphr.com) that offers full information about the benefits of maintaining a personal health record, along with free downloadable electronic forms for compiling one. The site has a search feature to find forms, tools, and software for storing records. Online services typically have access codes and other measures devised to keep information secure and accessible only by those you’ve authorized. Some online storage services are free, while others charge a monthly fee; check each service carefully when making your choice.

Asking Questions, Getting Answers

At some point, most of us will need a medical advocate—a friend or relative who can accompany us to our appointment or examination to help take notes, ask questions, and listen to information. If 
our doctor wants to send us on our way with a prescription, we first should ask for the drug’s name, its purpose, side effects, potential negative interaction, and so on. Then, when we fill the prescription, we need to check its accuracy before we leave the pharmacy. And we should always feel free to ask “why”: Why do I need this drug, treatment, or surgery? How else could we tackle this problem? What benefits will I get 
from this treatment plan, and what risks am I taking?

Some doctors can be prickly when they sense that their authority is 
being challenged. So how do we help make sure that our physician isn’t misdiagnosing our condition? Jerome Groopman, M.D., recommends that patients or their advocates describe to their doctors exactly what worries them most about their symptoms or condition. And ask early—don’t leave important details until the doctor is leaving the room. Groopman also suggests that patients ask questions 
to make their doctors think more deeply about their diagnosis, such as “What else could this be?”

We shouldn’t hesitate to speak up about sloppy practices, either. We can—and need to—ask whether all medical instruments, including stethoscopes and blood pressure armbands, 
have been sterilized, 
and whether we should be started on antibiotics before surgery, to help ward off post-surgical infections.

Illustrated by Pablo Bernasconi

Patient-Physician Compatibility?

Through the years, my expectations for physicians have changed. If you’re going to need ongoing service, such 
as from a cardiologist, dermatologist, internist, or gynecologist, then compatibility is much more important. On the other hand, if you’re seeing a specialist for a (hopefully) one-time treatment, such as an oncologist or surgeon, personality is not as important. What you really want to know is, “How good is the doctor for this type of treatment?” A good question to ask in the first meeting is, “What is your success rate?”

I firmly believe it’s important for patients to be accountable for their bodies and health. We are in a professional relationship with our physicians. We may form close bonds with the health care teams that tend to us or our loved ones, but we can’t afford to overlook potential warning signs simply because we like and trust them. Mistakes happen all the time. Better that we ask why an order has been changed, why a vital sign has been altered, why a medication has been dropped or started, than to have a simple slip-up go unchecked and develop into a fatal error.

Primary Concerns The Saturday Evening Post

As uninsured ranks grow and insured employees cope with complex health plans with varying copays and coverage options, people struggle with understanding their bills and detecting potential errors. But help is available from a growing cottage industry of health advocates and firms specializing in reviewing medical bills; discovering mistakes; and negotiating with health care providers, insurers, and collection agencies, reports Barb Berggoetz in her Sep/Oct 2010 Saturday Evening Post article “Decoding Your Medical Bills.”

Here’s how to contact the medical billing companies mentioned in her article and take control of your health care costs:

1. Medical Billing Advocates of America

PO Box 1705
Salem, Virginia 24153
billadvocates.com
540-387-5870

2. MedReview Solutions, Inc.

4840 Willow Ridge Court
Zionsville, Indiana 46077
medreviewsolutions.com
317-873-4872

3. Chapman Consulting and Hospital Bill Review

14604 Mansfield Dam Ct Unit #1
Austin, Texas 78734
hospitalbillreview.com
800-906-8085

4. Health Advocate, Inc.

3043 Walton Road, Suite 150
Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania 19462
healthadvocate.com
610-825-1222

Decoding Your Medical Bills The Saturday Evening Post

But with so many choices, which treatments actually improve and protect the skin’s appearance, and which ones simply add a new wrinkle to the budget? The best way to answer that question is to look first at what it is you’re saving your skin from:

When outdoors, wear a wide-brimmed hat and tightly woven clothing that covers your body.

Block the Sun

Protecting your skin from ultraviolet (UVA/UVB) radiation exposure (including indoor tanning), extremes of heat and cold, and air pollution can significantly reduce your risk of wrinkles and skin cancer.

“Baby boomers didn’t know better and received a great deal of harmful sun exposure before sunscreens were available,” says Dr. C. William Hanke, an eminent dermatologist and past president of the American Academy of Dermatology. “Ultraviolet light causes malignant melanoma, as well as basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, which are much more common skin cancers.”

Thankfully, broad-spectrum sunscreens protect against both UVA and UVB rays and are widely available today. They’re crucial for skin protection, and not just in the summer. While the sun’s UVB rays are strongest in the northern hemisphere May through September, UVA rays are present year round, penetrating windshields, light clothing, and office windows.

However, comparing the ingredients of one sunscreen to another can leave one bleary-eyed and confused.

“Check the product label,” advises Dr. Hanke. “Good broad-spectrum sunscreens have an SPF of 30 or greater and contain protective ingredients that include: avobenzone, ecamsule, oxybenzone, titanium dioxide, and zinc oxide.”

Choose a sunscreen that works best for you. People with oily skin may prefer an alcohol-based gel. Individuals with dry skin want a cream for moisture.

When applying sunscreen, don’t forget less obvious, but vulnerable areas, such as the ears, neck, and face—anywhere that is exposed.

“We see golfers in my clinical practice all the time,” says Dr. Hanke, who reports an increasing number of cancers on the lips, ears, and eyelids of outdoor enthusiasts who fail to adequately protect sensitive areas. “They golf for five or six hours at a time and need to wear sunscreens. The same advice applies to winter skiers as well.”

Clothing also adds an extra layer of protection. “Wear a hat,” stresses Dr. Hanke. “Men with hereditary hair loss who don’t wear hats are at higher risk for premalignant lesions and skin cancers—mostly squamous cell carcinomas—on their scalps. It can be a huge problem.”

When choosing sun-protective clothing, opt for dense, tightly woven fabrics.

“If you hold the hat or shirt up to the light and can see through it, so can the sun,” Dr. Hanke adds. “The hat should have a tight weave to protect the scalp.”

Today, most sporting goods companies, apparel stores, and online outlets sell sun-protective clothing.

Snuff Out Smoke

Aside from the serious health consequences, smoking and secondhand exposure is also bad for your skin—next in line to the sun in causing wrinkles. Nicotine impairs blood flow to the skin, accelerating the normal aging of epidermal tissue.

Keep It Clean

Science of Skin
Older skin is thinner and more fragile, and the deep layers 
contain less elastic tissue. Blood vessels are also less elastic, so that even minor injuries can cause bruising. The skin may be mottled with small, flat brown areas called lentigines (from the Latin word for lentils).

Young Skin: A thick outer layer and a large number of elastic fibers in the deeper layers help maintain the smoothness of young skin.

Older Skin: A thinner outer layer and fewer elastic fibers in the deeper layers result in skin that appears loose, with deeper creases and wrinkles.

Images reprinted from The Human Body, ©1995 Dorling Kindersley Ltd.

Facial hygiene is also critical. One of the first steps is choosing the right cleanser.

“If you have oily skin, you can use any soap you want, and it will probably not be irritating,” Dr. Hanke says. “The soap that I recommend for most people and use myself is plain white Dove. People with dry or oily skin can use it.”

For people with rough and scaly skin, occasionally using an exfoliant makes skin appear smoother and feel softer.

“As you age, dead cells build up on the skin surface,” Dr. Hanke explains. “Exfoliation removes the dead surface layer, and moisturizing helps keep skin soft.”

Cleanse your face twice a day—once in the morning and again at bedtime, then apply a moisturizer based on your skin type. For dry skin, opt for an occlusive moisturizer that covers the skin with a waterproof film through which water cannot evaporate or escape. For sensitive skin, some experts recommend applying a moisturizer containing soothing ingredients, such as bisabolol, a chamomile extract.

“As we get older, our skin is not the barrier that it once was,” says Dr. Hanke. “It dries out more easily. As a result, people need to moisturize their skin more frequently.”

Do high-end products equate with higher quality?

“Some inexpensive moisturizers such as Neutrogena and Oil of Olay are very good, as are some very expensive ones, such as La Prairie and LaMer,” notes the dermatologist. “Find one that works for you and does not irritate your skin.”

A word of caution: Don’t introduce too many products at the same time.

“Stick with one product line,” advises Dr. Hanke. “Different products can inactivate each other through chemical reactions and potentially irritate the skin surface.”

Rejuvenating Aging Skin

Innovations in anti-aging skin care are on the fast track to meet the growing demand of baby boomers (and their parents). From nonprescription “cosmeceuticals” to laser treatments, therapies are available that improve the skin’s surface texture, reduce irregular pigmentation, and help reverse the effects of sun damage.

Topicals: Typically used to address milder signs of aging. For example, retinol, a vitamin A compound, is the first antioxidant topical widely used in nonprescription creams and is the less potent cousin of tretinoin (Retin-A, Avage, Renova), a prescription-strength treatment for acne and fine wrinkles.The fastest growing segment of topical skin care, cosmeceuticals combine aspects of the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. Cosmeceuticals influence the function of the skin with biologically active compounds (vitamins, oils, herbs, and botanical extracts). Botanicals, for example, contain antioxidants that protect the skin’s surface. William Beeson, M.D., clinical professor in dermatology at Indiana University School of Medicine and noted facial plastic surgeon, has researched a cornucopia of compounds that rejuvenate skin tissues. His research led to the discovery of unique properties in rosemary, an herb that contains a potent antioxidant called carnosic acid. After demonstrating clinical efficacy, Dr. Beeson and colleagues developed a formulation called Effulgere (effulgere.com) that penetrates the skin surface more deeply and helps “protect the skin from further damage by enhancing the skin’s lipid barrier, brightening the skin, and improving its texture and tone.”

Chemical Peels: A chemical solution—such as phenol, tricholoacetic acid (TCA), or alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs)—that removes damaged outer layers of the skin, revealing the healthier layers below. Wrinkles from sun damage, aging, and heredity can be significantly reduced by undergoing a series of peels that also improve irregular skin pigmentation and remove early skin cancers (actinic keratoses).

Lasers: Many laser treatments are now used to minimize wrinkles, scars, skin discolorations (freckles or “age spots”), and blemishes on the face, neck, chest, and back of hands by removing the outer layer of skin (epidermis). The treatment simultaneously heats underlying tissues (dermis), stimulating the growth of new collagen fibers that form smoother, firmer skin. One of the more popular areas in minimally invasive cosmetic surgery, fractionated carbon dioxide (CO2) laser treatment is performed under topical anesthesia on select areas of damaged skin. The outpatient procedure creates microscopic holes in the skin, which then heal with new collagen that tightens skin and evens tone. Newer technologies offer surgeons a greater level of control in laser surfacing, permitting extreme precision, particularly in delicate areas.

Fillers: These reduce the appearance of facial lines and wrinkles by “plumping” furrows and hollows in the face, giving the skin a more youthful-looking appearance. Fillers (Juvaderm, Restylane, Gore-Tex) are very effective at contouring specific areas on the face, such as around the lips, including long, vertical “marionette” lines that start at the corners of the mouth and extend down the chin. Botulinum toxin type A (Botox, Dysport) injections also diminish lines and wrinkles associated with facial expression, including vertical lines between the eyebrows and on the bridge of the nose, forehead lines and furrows, and crow’s feet.

Saving Face: Skin Care Tips The Saturday Evening Post

Pronovost was no stranger to problems with the healthcare system. Before traveling to Nigeria, his father passed away from cancer that was misdiagnosed. By the time the correct diagnosis was made, it was too late for treatment.

“These and other experiences led me to believe that to improve health care, you have to affect policy,” says Pronovost. “That’s when I got the idea for the checklist.”

Peter J. Pronovost, M.D., Ph.D. was named one of the most influential people of 2008 by Time for using simple tools that greatly improved patient care.Credit: Chris Hartlove/John Hopskins Medical Institutions

Pronovost tested his first checklist for medicine in 2001—a simple sheet of paper with five steps for doctors to follow in the intensive care unit at Johns Hopkins Hospital for a common but vital procedure, the placing of central venous catheters. The results were astounding: After 15 months, the hospital saved about two million dollars, prevented 43 infections and 8 deaths.

Today, the checklist program is saving lives (and billions of health care dollars) around the country and across the world.

Pronovost champions additional innovative patient safety initiatives in his new book: a federal program to help medicine learn from its mistakes, a systematic way to ensure valid measurement and accurate reporting of health care quality and safety, and creation of a government body devoted to patient safety research.

Here’s an excerpt from “Safe Patients, Smart Hospitals: How One Doctor’s Checklist Can Help Us Change Health Care From the Inside Out,” by Peter Pronovost, M.D., Ph.D., and Eric Vohr, released in February 2010.

Read more about Dr. Pronovost’s groundbreaking work as featured in the November 2008 Post article, “A Checklist That’s Saving Lives” by Eric Vohr.

Safe Patients, Smart Hospitals The Saturday Evening Post

One of the bill’s authors was Michigan’s John Dingell, who represented the 15th Congressional district from 1933 to 1955. He was succeeded by his son, who has held this post from 1955 to today.

Now the longest-serving representative, John Dingell Jr. continues to promote his father’s Wagner-Murray-Dingell bill. Sixty-six years have elapsed, but the bill still lingers in committee, unable to move forward or to be killed. Other legislation has come and gone. The government has taken action on other issues, many of which were not as important.

We asked Dr. Benjamin Franklin why the government has not resolved the issue in over a half century of deliberation. The problem, he indicated, is that lawmakers like to work within familiar grounds. Radical change only comes when pressed by emergencies:

“Those who govern, having much business on their hands, do not generally like to take the trouble of considering and carrying into execution new projects. The best public measures are therefore seldom adopted from previous wisdom, but forced by the occasion.”

Where Is the Government’s Health Care Plan? The Saturday Evening Post

In your November/December 2008 issue I happened to read that leg and hand spasms could be caused by the cholesterol medicines. I had been having such severe pains that I would have to pull over in traffic because I was afraid to drive with them. I tried eating bananas and all the other things people said would help to no avail.

I showed the article to my doctor who took me off of the cholesterol meds. In the next two weeks, I had the beginnings of spasms, but they never got full-fledged. I am now free of the spasms and am greatly appreciative of that paragraph in From the Pharmacy. A heartfelt thank you!

Johanna

You’re welcome! Thanks for writing. It’s important to keep cholesterol in check so please consider discussing your lipid levels and necessary therapy options with your doctor.

A Heartfelt Thank You The Saturday Evening Post

This month, Mental Health America is celebrating its 100th anniversary —a remarkable legacy of one man who turned his personal struggle into a national movement.

Around the turn of the 20th century, recent Yale graduate and newly minted Wall Street financier Clifford W. Beers suffered his first episode of bipolar disorder (manic depressive illness) and spent the following three years learning firsthand of the inadequate and often cruel treatment of people with mental illnesses.

Upon his release, Beers set out to expose the abuse and reform care. In 1908, his autobiography roused the nation to the plight of people with mental illnesses. And on February 19, 1909, Beers, along with the philosopher William James and psychiatrist Adolf Meyer, created the National Committee for Mental Hygiene, an organization we know today as Mental Health America. The modern mental health movement had begun.

Today, we remain focused on many of the issues highlighted by Beers in a speech delivered in June 1932 to the French National League for Mental Hygiene: a struggle to eradicate stigma, to focus on prevention as well as treatment, and to bring mental illness under the umbrella of care designated for physical illnesses. Consider his words:

“One who founds a movement of vital importance to humanity inevitably builds better than he knows. In my earliest plans and first editions of my autobiography, A Mind That Found Itself, the salient features of the mental hygiene movement were outlined as follows: scientific treatment and humane care for the mentally ill; research into the causes and cure of disorders of the mind; and the application of methods and measures for their prevention. The movement, however, is now so broad in scope and purpose that it can be of possible benefit to everyone.

“One [result] is the remarkable and steady change in the attitude of the public toward disorders of the mind, toward those who suffer from them and, also, toward the institutions in which such patients are treated. Indeed, so-called insanity is now widely regarded as a disease and not as a disgrace.

“A second outstanding result of organized work in mental hygiene is the bringing of the medical profession, especially the psychiatrists, into close and continuous cooperation with the lay public, particularly the leaders in education, law, religion, and in social work.

“With this merging of forces, the mental hygiene movement will not only reach its known objectives, but will continue to develop and will endure so long as the mind of man serves as the sanctuary of the divine spark that makes possible such work and such movements as have brought this distinguished audience together in this great amphitheater tonight.”

Inspired by the work of Beers and many others over the past 100 years, Mental Health America continues to transform our nation’s approach to mental health. The Mental Health Parity Act ended discrimination in insurance coverage for people with mental illness, removing some of the financial barriers that have kept people from treatment. We must, and will, continue our efforts to remove the stigma of mental illnesses, effectively treat and prevent mental health conditions, and promote positive mental health as a reality for all.

For more information from Mental Health America about advocacy, education, and support for Americans with mental health conditions, visit mentalhealthamerica.net .

A Century of Mental Health The Saturday Evening Post

The novel approaches promise individualized services to promote health and prevent disease. Spending less time in waiting rooms and more time with your healthcare provider is another potential plus. Advocates say the services are worth the annual fee, which ranges from a few hundred dollars to $20,000.

What is your experience with alternative health care systems?

Shopping for Healthcare The Saturday Evening Post

Data show that measurements recorded at the same times and place each day are often lower than readings taken in the doctor’s office and closer to the average BP recorded by 24-hour ambulatory monitoring, which is considered the gold standard. Home blood pressure monitoring also helps distinguish between “white coat” (elevated readings in the doctor’s office only), “masked” (elevated readings at home only), and sustained hypertension.

An expert group of cardiovascular physicians and nurses recently published a “Call to Action” for using home blood pressure monitors, including an appeal for insurance providers to cover the cost of the devices. The American Heart Association offers these tips for getting reliable BP readings at home:

• Your healthcare professional should help you select a cuff-style upper arm monitor, make sure it’s accurate, and show you how to use it.
• Cuff size is important. To get the right one, measure around your upper arm and compare to the cuff size indicated on the monitor’s packaging.
• Sit with your back straight and supported on a high-backed dining chair, rather than a sofa. Both feet should be flat on the floor, with arm resting on a flat surface and the upper arm at heart level.
• Each time you measure, take two to three readings one minute apart. Record all the results.

To download and print a blood pressure log from the American Heart Association, visit their website americanheart.org and search for “blood pressure tracker.” For a paper version to copy as needed, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to BP Tracker, 1100 Waterway Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46202.

Blood Pressure Monitors Come Home The Saturday Evening Post