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Patient non-compliance is a serious healthcare issue, with studies showing that it can range from 20% to 80% depending on the type of treatment. The problem of non-compliance is not a new one and has been investigated for several decades worldwide.
Patient non-compliance lessens the quality of healthcare and can lead to dangerous consequences for patients. In the US, it has been estimated that non-compliance causes 340 deaths per day and that is responsible for 10% to 25% of hospital and nursing home admissions. Patient non-compliance is taken so seriously in the New York Times once dubbed it the nation’s “other drug problem”.
Patient non-compliance also has an important economic impact on healthcare. According to a 2002 report by the Center for Business Intelligence, patient non-compliance costs the US economy around US$100 billion per year and of this total, lost pharmacy revenues account for US$8 billion. With the allocation of healthcare resources becoming such an important issue for governments, healthcare providers are keen to tackle the problem of non-compliance.
The importance of patient compliance is also well recognised by those researching developing new treatments, as it has an important bearing on the evaluation of new medicines. Even though compliance in clinical trials is often better than that seen in general clinical practice for many conditions, patient compliance is an important issue that must not be overlooked.
For example, a Canadian neurology study focusing on migraine concluded that a better adherence to treatment could improve health outcomes, but that the compliance strategies available were mostly ineffective and were not well assessed. The therapeutic gain in many studies was, at best, in the order of 30% to 40%, but through effective compliance strategies the author suggested that the frequency of migraine attacks could be reduced by 50%.
Paying attention to compliance issues is therefore essential to ensuring that the data collected during the development of a new medicine is as accurate as possible. When planning trials, researchers aim to ensure maximum patient compliance. Compliance will be affected by factors such as the duration of the treatment, the number of times a drug has to be taken per day and potential side effects.
Conclusion:
Regardless of the science and medical technology behind a particular drug, it will only be therapeutically effective if a patient takes it according to their doctors’ recommendations.
Simplifying dosing regimes, reducing the number of pills to be taken daily and developing formulations tailored to a patient’s lifestyle can all help in this regard. More efforts also need to be made by healthcare providers to understand why patients do not fully comply with their treatments and how this problem can be addressed.
By: Friendly alien
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