An older patient has been diagnosed with possible white coat hypertension. Which action will the nurse plan to take next?
a. Schedule the patient for regular blood pressure (BP) checks in the clinic.
b. Instruct the patient about the need to decrease stress levels.
c. Tell the patient how to self-monitor and record BPs at home.
d. Inform the patient that ambulatory blood pressure monitoring will be needed.
ANS: C
Having the patient self-monitor BPs at home will provide a reliable indication about whether the patient has hypertension. Regular BP checks in the clinic are likely to be high in a patient with white coat hypertension. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring may be used if the data from self-monitoring are unclear. Although elevated stress levels may contribute to hypertension, instructing the patient about this is unlikely to reduce BP.
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