Medication adherence or compliance refers to the extent to which a person’s medication-taking behavior corresponds with those prescribed by a healthcare provider. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that adherence to medications in developed countries averages 50% among patients with chronic diseases, although it can vary substantially by patient population, age and location.
As expected, non-adherence or non-compliance to medications leads to waste, disease progression, reduced functional abilities, lower quality of life, increased use of medical resources, hospitalizations and premature death. Medication non-adherence can arise from taking more or less of a prescribed product, taking it at the wrong times, discontinuing prematurely, or not filling a prescription. It can be an intentional decision or passive unintentional process.
Intentional non-adherence arises when a patient actively decides to not adhere to medication regimen. Commonly cited reasons include adverse effects, lack of expected benefit or stigma, unresolved concerns about diagnosis, lack of symptoms or the time it takes to observe or experience an effect from medication.
Unintentional nonadherence results from factors such as forgetfulness. Elderly patients are particularly vulnerable to unintentional nonadherence resulting from physical and/or cognitive limitations in their capacity to manage medications, as well as polypharmacy and complex medication regimens.
Given the impact of non-adherence on hospitalization, morality and healthcare costs, extensive interest lies in developing technological solutions to address unintentional non-adherence, especially in older adults. Smart electronic medication reminders and AI monitoring using mobile devices serves as a convenient economic solution to improve drug non-adherence in older patients.
Pharmacists play a key role in being able to identify patients who may be non adherent or non compliant to medications, guide the choice and use of appropriate adherence technologies, guide the choice and use of appropriate adherence tools, and provide real-time monitoring of adherence. Once unintentional non adherence has been detected in an older adult, pharmacists can be an excellent resource for patients and their care-givers.
MedChoice is continually looking for ways to help patients take their medications. We offer text message and mobile app reminders along with ExactDose Prefilled packages that make it easier to remember when to take your medications. Talk to our pharmacist to learn more about how we can help you remember to take your medications as prescribed so you can enjoy a hopefully longer and healthier life.
Talk to a MedChoice Pharmacist
Do you have any questions about the above article or want to learn more? Feel free to schedule a call or video chat with one of the highly experienced pharmacists at MedChoice Digital Pharmacy who can answer any of your questions. We are here to help you without you having to leave the comfort of your home.