Member: My daughter keeps telling me that I should get a blood pressure monitor to use at home since my doctor started me on water pills for high blood pressure. What do you think? Is it a good use of my money? —Patrick, Stillwater
Pharmacist: Patrick, I absolutely agree with your daughter! When your doctor puts you on a new medication you should ask your doctor how to tell if it is working e ffectively.
For some medications, like those for blood pressure and diabetes, there are machines that can be bought at some pharmacies to track how they are working. For other medications, for instance to treat pain or breathing problems, you should keep track of how often you are experiencing these issues and how severe they are.
Tracking these items in a tracking sheet and sharing this information with your doctor or pharmacist can help them know if you are on the right medication at the right amount. You can find different tracking sheets for this information online at the American Heart Association (heart.org), American Diabetes Association (diabetes.org), or by searching the name of the condition and tracking sheets online.