Blood pressure monitor sales booming as aging population turns to self-testing at home

Drug Store News, June 24, 1991

Blood pressure monitor sales booming as aging population turns to self-testing at home

The American health care system is in the midst of a quiet but fundamental revolution. With baby boomers aging into their 40s, health care costs skyrocketing and the parents of the boomers entering the chronic care stage of life, it's no wonder that the health care pendulum is swinging away from the institutional setting, and toward prevention and self-care at home.

Americans are taking charge of their own health. In partnership with their doctors and often with the guidance of pharmacists, millions of patients with chronic conditions like high blood pressure are keeping track of their own condition and supplementing their doctor's care with special diet and exercise. In line with these changes, demand for home care products and self-testing devices has never been greater.

These patients have a real ally in today's advanced generation of home blood pressure monitors, and in the drug stores that carry them. Indeed, self-testing blood pressure devices can rightly be called "the father of home health care," since they were an early catalyst in the development of the industry.

What's more, continuing advances in the technology of blood pressure devices by leading manufacturers such as Omron Healthcare have helped bring home testing within reach of any consumer. Today's monitors are compact, convenient and easy to use. They also come in a wide range of prices and models, from self-taking manual kits to automatic digital models with built-in printers.

These product advances, combined with a growing demand from health-conscious consumers, have powered sales of home blood pressure monitors ahead at roughly 10 percent a year and created a $100 million category. Given the demographic and market forces that are at work, the potential for future growth seems enormous.

Drug chains are uniquely positioned to harness that growth. With their built-in consumer base, health care orientation and core focus in pharmacy, they can meet the growing demand for home blood pressure kits head-on. The rewards are obvious: incremental profits, added customer service at a professional level, and the chance to build new relationships between customers and pharmacists in your stores.

PHOTO : Pharmacists can play a key role in the sale of blood pressure monitors to their customers. Drug chains can make the most of the natural tie-in between professional counseling and blood pressure monitors by utilizing the section in front of or adjacent to the pharmacy counter for product display. Omron Healthcare recommends a basic planogram of at least four Omron devices that offer a range of features and prices, including the Automatic Oscillometric Digital Model HEM-713C and the Digital Finger Model HEM-815F.