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The service specification for the Hypertension Case-Finding Service has been updated with a number of changes, including the exclusion of patients who have already had their blood pressure checked at the pharmacy within the last five years. 

The changes, which come into effect on Thursday September 3, were published yesterday by NHS England. 
Under the new service specification, patients who have already been diagnosed with hypertension are now expressly excluded from the service. 

Other eligibility criteria have also been clarified, including the restricting of signposting from GP surgeries to over-40s who have not had a diagnosis of hypertension and have not had their blood pressure checked in the last five years.

While repeat blood pressure checks are now out of the scope of the service, one repeat check may be offered within five years in “exceptional” cases such as where there is a family history of hypertension. Records of these repeat checks must be kept for post-payment verification purposes. 

Similarly, some adults aged under 40 may be offered a blood pressure check on request, such as South Asian and African-Caribbean populations. Contemporaneous notes must be made to record the reason for providing the service to these ‘exceptional’ patients. 

And ambulatory blood pressure monitoring can now be offered to over-40s at the request of other healthcare professionals who undertake hypertension case-finding, such as dentists and optometrists. 

The off-site delivery of this service must now be limited to four days per financial year, and permission for this must be sought from the local Integrated Care Board. A pharmacist or pharmacy technician must be present to supervise any off-site provision.

The new service specification also clarifies the requirements for ABPM provision, for example stating that if a patient fails to present for their ABPM appointment the pharmacy must make at least two attempts to contact them to rearrange within seven days, and notify their GP on the seventh day if they fail to reach them.

It also states that pharmacies must have a working and appropriately calibrated blood pressure monitor and ABPM monitor available for inspection (subject to being loaned to patients) in order to be eligible for service fees.