A WEEK of community blood pressure checks will be offered by NHS Gloucestershire, starting at Tesco, Dockham Road, Cinderford. 

From 10am, Monday, September 2, One Gloucestershire’s Information Bus with the Outreach Vaccination and Health Team will offer drop-ins for a blood pressure check and a chat with members of the team about any further support necessary. 

It is part of Know Your Numbers Week, an annual campaign led by charity Blood Pressure UK, which includes a series of health check drop-in events across Gloucestershire. 

Dr Graham Mennie, local GP and Clinical Lead and Chair, Circulatory Clinical Programme Group, NHS Gloucestershire, said: “High blood pressure is a major cause of heart attacks and stroke. Around one in three adults have high blood pressure, but many don’t realise it because it often doesn’t have any symptoms until it’s too late.

“That’s why it’s so important to take the time to find out your numbers and start making healthy lifestyle changes or taking medicines if you need them to help bring your blood pressure down.”

Oonagh Wilson, Clinical Lead, Community Outreach Vaccination and Health Team at Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Know Your Numbers Week is a good opportunity to talk about the importance of being aware of your blood pressure. 

“We all lead busy, often stressful, lives but taking some time to think about our health and wellbeing and understanding the importance of stats like blood pressure is key to preventing things like heart attacks and strokes.

“Our fantastic health team will be out and about in the community all week, offering simple health checks, including blood pressure, and chatting to people about simple changes they can make to their lifestyle, such as stopping smoking, improving their diet, or increasing exercise.”

In the last year, Gloucestershire’s Outreach Vaccination and Health Team have given more than 1,250 blood pressure checks at drop-in health check events, with around 150 people referred to their GP for further support.

A full list of where you can catch the team is available on the Gloucestershire Hospitals website.