Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are a leading cause of maternal death in the state of Indiana. To address this critical issue, the Indiana Hospital Association is teaming up with the Preeclampsia Foundation to distribute 9,000 Cuff Kits© to 169 birthing hospitals, Nurse Family Partnership, and local Health Departments. The Cuff Kits© are provided to maternal health providers to help patients monitor their blood pressure from home during pregnancy and the postpartum period.

“Complications from hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, including gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, eclampsia, and HELLP syndrome, often go unnoticed because the symptoms mimic normal pregnancy symptoms,” said Preeclampsia Foundation CEO Eleni Tsigas. “The Cuff Kit© program builds a partnership between a patient and her provider to ensure she understands the importance of blood pressure monitoring, knows her numbers, and prioritizes sharing it with her healthcare provider.”

The Cuff Kit© program, initially launched to support increase in telehealth monitoring, includes a pregnancy-validated home blood pressure cuff and educational materials to train patients on how to accurately take and record their blood pressure. The program provides flexibility in use across multiple clinical settings (those with and without telehealth options) because of its app integration capabilities and inclusion of a traditional paper blood pressure log and instruction sheet that is available in 12 different global languages. As part of the program, health care providers can opt-in to share deidentified patient data and provider perspectives to further research into self-measured blood pressure as an innovative maternal health improvement strategy.

“Improving the health of Hoosier moms and their babies is one of our top safety initiatives in the state of Indiana,” said Brittany Waggoner, Maternal & Infant Quality Improvement Advisor for the Indiana Hospital Association. “Thanks to funding from the Indiana Department of Health and our partnership with the Preeclampsia Foundation, we can save lives simply by getting these blood pressure kits at no cost to the providers and patients who need them. And by doing so, it helps lower maternal mortality across the state.”

The partnership seeks to specifically engage communities of color in the state, who are disproportionately affected by health disparities and at higher risk for pregnancy complications like preeclampsia. Blood pressure cuff use between prenatal visits and during the postpartum period can help patients and providers identify and treat problems and lower preventable, adverse birth outcomes for mothers and babies.

For more information about the Cuff Kit©, please visit www.preeclampsia.org/the-cuff-project

About Indiana Hospital Association

The Indiana Hospital Association serves as the professional trade association for more than 170 acute care, critical access, behavioral health, and other specialized hospitals in Indiana. IHA advocates on behalf of its members in Indiana’s General Assembly, U.S. Congress, and with multiple regulatory agencies at the state and federal levels. Dedicated to improving quality, patient safety, and Hoosiers’ health status, IHA holds numerous grants and facilitates collaboration among hospitals to improve outcomes. IHA also provides members with the data analytics that they need to ensure access to quality, cost-effective health care services across the state of Indiana. To learn more about IHA, visit IHAconnect.org.

About the Preeclampsia Foundation

The Preeclampsia Foundation is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 2000 to improve the outcomes of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy by educating, supporting, and engaging the community, improving healthcare practices, and finding a cure. For more information, visit www.preeclampsia.org.