High blood pressure: Primary care

Practice Team Information (PTI)

Data on the number of patients consulting a General Practitioner (GP) or practice nurse and the number of consultations with a GP or Practice Nurse for high blood pressure were available from the PTI scheme. The collection of PTI data has been discontinued, but will be replaced by the Scottish Primary Care Information Resource (SPIRE) - a collaboration between the Scottish Government and NHS National Services Scotland. The last information available from PTI was for financial year 2012/13.

Number of patients consulting with a General Practitioner or Practice Nurse

In 2012/13, it is estimated that over 265,000 men and over 305,500 women in Scotland consulted with a general practitioner (GP) or practice nurse for high blood pressure at some point during the year. More details on the numbers of patients consulting are available in a worksheet

In 2012/13, for every 1,000 patients registered with a practice, about 100 consulted with a GP or practice nurse at least once in the year for high blood pressure. This proportion consulting was higher for females than males. The figure rose steeply with age and has risen over the years since 2003/04, when the rate of consultation was 80. Further details are provided in a worksheet. At all ages apart from 45-54 years and 55-64 years the rate of women consulting a GP or practice nurse for high blood pressure was higher than the rate for men.

Using the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) measure, the rate of patients consulting for high blood pressure per 1,000 patients has been consistently greatest in deprivation quintile 3 over time (2003/04 to 2012/13) for females and generally in deprivation quintile 3 or 4 for males. For each quintile the rate has been higher for females than males over time. In 2012/13 the rate was higher in the least than the most deprived quintile for both males and females. This has been the case since 2003/04 for males but from 2004/05 to 2006/07 the rate was higher in the most deprived quintile than the least for females. More information is provided in a worksheet (39Kb)

Note that PTI data are standardised to account for differences between the PTI sample and the Scottish population in terms of age, gender and deprivation with deprivation categorised using SIMD quintiles. Therefore, figures are not strictly comparable to those published previously. For further information see the notes of revisions.

Number of consultations with a General Practitioner or Practice Nurse

In 2012/13, there were an estimated 436,630 consultations for high blood pressure with general practitioners (GPs) and 846,910 with practice nurses. Since 2003/04, there has been a steady decrease in the number of consultations with GPs and a corresponding increase in practice nurse consultations. Further detail is available in a worksheet). 

In 2012/13, there were 232.0 consultations per 1,000 registered patients, 215.6 per 1,000 males and 247.9 per 1,000 females, with either a GP or practice nurse for high blood pressure. The consultation rate increased with age for both males and females. Further detail is available in a worksheet 

Average annual number of contacts per patient for high blood pressure

The average annual number of contacts with a GP or practice nurse per patient for high blood pressure was 2.2 in 2012/13. There was minimal difference between the average annual number of contacts with a GP or practice nurse for men and women (2.2 and 2.3, respectively). Using the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) measure, a deprivation gradient was evident for both men and women; the average number of consultations was higher for those living in the least deprived quintiles than those in the most deprived. Further detail is available in a worksheet (23Kb)

Note that PTI data are standardised to account for differences between the PTI sample and the Scottish population in terms of age, gender and deprivation with deprivation categorised using SIMD quintiles. Therefore, figures are not strictly comparable to those published previously. For further information see the notes of revisions.