Hardware, plants, diastolic BP — Bunnings-based hypertension screening trial is just the beginning
'Bunnings is a place people do go a lot in Australia — especially men,' the lead researcher says.
A clinical trial is snagging Bunnings shoppers for a blood pressure check in a bid to reach patients who do not typically consider themselves at risk of stroke.
Called Shop-to-Stop Hypertension, it involves putting commercial blood pressure self-monitoring stations into 30 Bunnings stores, then following up if the patients who use them have raised blood pressure.
Lead researcher Professor Alta Schutte, a co-chair of the National Hypertension Taskforce, would not be drawn on whether patients should avoid Bunnings sausage sizzles as part of hypertension prevention.
But she said the goal was reaching patients who typically saw their GP less, such as men and those under 50.
