Impact of a web-based intervention on the awareness of medication adherence

BackgroundMedication nonadherence is a widely recognized problem that leads to adverse outcomes and increased health care costs. Reasons for medication nonadherence are multifactorial, and patient awareness of the salience of medication adherence is critical.ObjectiveThe purpose of this research was to assess the impact of a pharmacist-led, web-based video presentation in increasing patients' awareness of the importance of medication adherence.MethodsPatients aged 35 years and above, taking at least 1 chronic prescription medication were included in the study (n = 166). Patients completed a pre-survey, watched a pharmacist-led web-based video presentation educating them on the importance of medication adherence, then completed a 1-month follow-up survey. The primary outcome was measurement of change in patients' awareness of the importance of medication adherence.ResultsResults indicated a statistically significant increase in the primary outcome of increasing awareness of the importance of medication adherence. More patients in the follow-up survey indicated that it was important for their health to take their medications around the same time daily (P = 0.002), and more patients identified that their family will be impacted as a result of their medication nonadherence (P = 0.001) as compared to the pre-survey. More patients in the follow-up survey reported that they expected to experience fewer emergency room visits (P = 0.0001) and anticipated that they would get more time to spend with friends and family (P = 0.0039) as benefits of taking medications as prescribed.ConclusionA pharmacist-led web-based video presentation may be a low-cost intervention to increase patients' awareness of the importance of medication adherence.