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To the Editor:
When I recently saw the article "High Blood Pressure: When Should Employees Be Sent Home From Work?" (Foster, 2009) listed on the cover of the AAOHN Journal, I was pleased that a standard of care had been published in our professional organization's journal. However, after reading the article and then sharing it with my peers, at a minimum we were concerned with the final recommendation.
A blood pressure of 140/90 mmHg was given as a guideline to send an employee home from work. It is well-known that a blood pressure of 140/90 mmHg could likely cover a huge percentage of the working population, especially factory and shift workers, who often have poor health habits. Routinely sending employees with this blood pressure home to "help them better understand the importance of controlling blood pressure," as the author stated, would quickly result in a loss of credibility for the occupational health nurse with employees, management, and local practitioners. Furthermore, no return- to-work parameters were given. Obviously, recommendations of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC 7) regarding counseling and follow-up should be observed.
Within my circle of colleagues, it is common practice to send employees with a diastolic reading of...