Medication Adherence in the Elderly with Chronic Diseases Referring to Academic Medical Centers of Ardabil, Iran in 2018

Abstract

Background: Today, the medical world faces an increase in the incidence of chronic diseases. Medication adherence is an essential component of the effective treatment of such diseases and failure to it, especially in the elderly, has a negative impact on health. Objectives: The current study aimed at determining the level of medication adherence in the elderly with chronic diseases referring to academic medical centers in Ardabil, Iran. Methods: In the current cross sectional study, 222 elderly patients with chronic diseases (i e, musculoskeletal, diabetes, cardiovascular and renal conditions) referring to the clinics of Imam Khomeini, Fatemi, and Alavi hospitals in Ardabil in 2018 were selected by convenience sampling method. Data were collected using a questionnaire including demographic characteristics and the Morisky medication adherence scale (MMAS). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression analysis with SPSS version 16. Results:The mean age of the elderly was 68.25 ± 7.65 years; 187 (84%) subjects had unsatisfactory medication adherence (score < 6) and only 35 (16%) had a good medication adherence (score > 6). The probability of satisfactory adherence to medication was higher in the elderly with higher level of education, but other variables such as age, gender, occupational status, income level, network of life, place of residence, marital status, and type of chronic disease had no significant effect on medication adherence. Conclusions: The high level of medication non-adherence in the elderly with chronic diseases is a matter of concern and it seems necessary to perform studies on the barriers to medication adherence in the elderly and solve them.

An adapted model of cost-related medication nonadherence among older adult patients with chronic diseases: an Iranian qualitative study

“…So far, few conceptual frameworks have been developed to help understand CRN behavior and to examine the effect of contextual factors on CRN in different populations [ 15 ]. There are numerous studies reporting factors related to medication adherence in the older adults with chronic diseases [ 13 , 16 – 21 ]. Also, there are limited studies investigating CRN in older adults with particular diseases [ 13 , 22 ], nonetheless, there is a general dearth in literature on describing a comprehensive model regarding CRN behavior in older adult patients, particularly in developing countries.The objective of this study was to develop an adopted conceptual framework using opinions retrieval from healthcare informants on the contextual determinants that affect CRN in older adult populations with chronic diseases.…”