Heart and vascular disease are the major threat to people around the world. They are approximately a half cause of death in Poland (47.85%
in 2001). Also they are the most common reason for hospitalization, disability and inefficiency. Thus lead to huge social and economic costs.
High premature mortality in Poland caused by these diseases is among the highest in Europe. Standardized mortality rates due to ischemic
heart disease and stroke are 1.5 to 3 times higher than in countries of the European Union.

Recently there is a significant nurses’ participation of prevention and education in Polish society. This is an important area in which nurses
perform professionally. This kind of action is a serious challenge. It requires highly specialized preparation, competence to take effective
education and apply educational standards for professional practice.

The aim of this paper is to present the important role of nurses from Regional Center of Hypertension, Medical University of Gdańsk.
Research conducted in Regional Center of Hypertension in Gdańsk showed that the effective method of improving the level of patient’s
knowledge in prevention of cardiovascular diseases is taking part in educational programme.

By increasing the level of knowledge about disease, risk factors of cerebrovascular diseases, learning the proper techniques of measurement
the blood pressure, educational programme is a complement of nursing care and an important part of reducing the risk of hypertension.