Blood Pressure Companion

App screenshot

App demo video

Blood Pressure Companion (BPcompanion) is a free app however, it is only available on apple devices. BPCompanion allows you to conveniently track systolic, diastolic and mean arterial pressure. Weight and heart rate can also be added and easily edited. Reminders for doctors visits and measuring blood pressure can also be created. The app not only pertains to patients but also clinicians. Clinicians are able to use the app to organize patient’s data which is very convenient as majority of health records are now electronic.¹  BPcompanion also allows individuals to input their measurements at any time of day and provides real time feedback. Furthermore, individuals are also able to have more than one profile on the app therefore, allowing clinicians to keep track of multiple patient’s measurements at once.  

A benefit of the following app is that individuals blood pressure measurements are organized into a visual aid. For example, after inputting their scores they are able to visually see trends on a graph. According to Shneiderman et al (2013), visualization amplifies the benefits of health information and networks, by educating patient, clinician and policy makers to make better decisions pertaining to health. Furthermore, visualization increases patient’s knowledge and sense of responsibility for their health.²  In other words, visual representation leads to better and more knowledgeable decision making. Although BPcompanions reports are graphic they are not necessarily comprehensive. For example, the app does not provide a written description explaining what the graphs mean. Many aging and elderly individuals are unable to read their blood pressure scores and are therefore congesting doctor’s offices with minor questions. Furthermore, if comprehensive reports are not given along side the graphic trends then the visual feature becomes useless. 

According to Shneiderman et al there has been a huge shift from individuals running to their doctor's office when faced with an injury and illness to instead running to the internet. ² Therefore, to ensure individuals are not congesting doctor’s offices for minor concerns and questions it is important that apps such as BPCompanion give comprehensive detailed reports along with the visual representations. Furthermore, BPComapanion respects the privacy of all individuals. Their privacy policy clearly states that user’s information will not be sold, rented or given to any third parties. However, there is opportunity for individual’s blood pressure measures to be used for research purposes, but that is only if users consent is given. 

BPCompanion also allows for the collection of multiple people’s blood pressure on a single account. More specifically, ten plus individuals can use the same cellular device to store their blood pressure measurements. This is especially beneficial for clinicians as they can use the app to identify health trends in different populations. Patients can also benefit from this feature. With the use of the app clinicians will be able to identify trends, therefore if a certain population has poor blood pressure measurements the opportunity for extra care may be provided. 

Overall, the following app is feasible, reliable and has the potential to create change in certain populations. However, it does not provide comprehensive information on user’s blood pressure measurements. Therefore, not helping to solve the problem of an overflow of individuals visiting doctors offices for minor questions and concerns. With a few small adjustments to the apps current function it has the potential to create an enormous amount of change in the lives of many. 

References

<sup>1. Terry, N. P. (2015). Mobile Health: Assessing the Barriers. Chestnet,14-2459.↩
2. Shneiderman, B., Plaisant, C., & Hesse, B. W. (2013). Improving healthcare with interactive visualization. Computer, 46(5), 58-66. doi:10.1109/MC.2013.38↩</sup>