Investigation of blood pressure awareness, insight status, and rational drug use in individuals with hypertension

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the effects of blood pressure awareness and insight levels on rational drug use in individuals with hypertension. Material and Method: The population of this descriptive, cross-sectional, and correlational study consisted of patients with hypertension who were receiving inpatient treatment in the internal medicine and surgical clinics of Hospital. The sample of the study comprised 206 patients with hypertension who met the inclusion criteria: being 18 years of age or older, having been diagnosed with hypertension for at least six months, having no verbal communication impairment, having no cognitive impairment, having no diagnosed psychiatric disorder, and agreeing to participate in the study. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using the Patient Information Form, the Blood Pressure Awareness and Insight Scale (BASIS), and the Rational Drug Use Scale (RDUS). The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods with the IBM SPSS Statistics 27 software package. Results: The mean score of the patients on the BASIS was 6.49±1.63, while the mean score on the RDUS was 64.54±8.93. BASIS levels differed significantly according to employment status, occupation, presence of comorbidities, regular use of antihypertensive medications, number of antihypertensive medications used, and frequency of home blood pressure measurement (p<0.05). RDUS scores were significantly higher among participants who were employed, had a higher level of education, used their antihypertensive medications regularly, measured their blood pressure regularly, attended regular physician follow-ups, and had received education regarding hypertension and medication treatment (p<0.05). A statistically significant negative association was observed between BASIS and RDUS, with BASIS accounting for 4.2% of the variance in RDUS. Conclusion: The findings of this study indicated that patients with hypertension had above-moderate levels of blood pressure awareness-insight and rational drug use. However, rational drug use was found to decrease as blood pressure awareness-insight increased. Accordingly, educational and counseling interventions that improve blood pressure awareness and insight should be developed to promote appropriate medication use among patients with hypertension.