Standards for professional monitoring of capillary blood glucose

After updating the blood glucose meters used in Portsmouth, variations in the amount of strips used by health professionals were reported, which appeared to be unrelated to the patients' conditions. A district standard for professional monitoring of blood glucose levels was developed, following which the monitoring carried out on 100 in‐patients and 79 patients visited by community nurses was audited against the standard. Overtesting was evident in some patients in all categories, indicating inappropriate use of resources. Undertesting was also evident, which was particularly worrying in those patients who were acutely ill. The standard has been updated, and awareness about the standards has now been raised. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.