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One in three patients does not take medication properly putting their health at risk and costing the NHS half a billion pounds every year
- Aston Medication Adherence Study analysed one million prescriptions
- People often put off by side-effects and not understanding instructions
- Certain groups more susceptible to a lack of adherence to guidelines
- Those whose primary language is Urdu and Bengali struggled as did over-60s
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One in three patients is putting their health at risk because they do not take their medication properly, costing the NHS an estimated £500 million every year.
Fears about potential side-effects and poor understanding of doctors' instructions are partly responsible for the issue, according to a study.
Researchers analysing one million prescriptions found that the absence of symptoms and a lack of trust in pharmacists also played a part in people deciding to stop taking their medication.
Understanding: The Aston Medication Adherence
Study analysed one million prescriptions and found that a number of
factors, such as side effects and poor instructions from doctors, were
responsible for people not taking medication properly
It found that certain ethnic groups are more likely to experience difficulties in understanding how to take medication.
People whose primary language is Urdu or Bengali are particularly susceptible, as are those living in poorer inner-city areas.
They found that people aged over 60 struggled with adherence to medication patterns.
The study, carried out by researchers at Aston University’s Pharmacy School, was centred on the Heart of Birmingham Teaching Primary Care Trust, looking at those suffering from type 2 diabetes, hypothyroidism and high cholesterol.
Health bodies are facing increasing pressure to manage treatable, long-term conditions in an attempt to reduce hospital admissions.
Findings: The study, carried out by researchers
at Aston University¿s Pharmacy School, looked at those suffering from
type 2 diabetes, hypothyroidism and high cholesterol
Professor Chris Langley, principal investigator for the AMAS said: 'What is important about the AMAS is that it identifies adherence patterns within an ethnically diverse inner city area with high levels of deprivation; this is currently unchartered territory.
'The results from this study have provided an intriguing insight into adherence behaviour within an inner-city population, whilst the focus group data provided context and understanding of the barriers to adherence from the patients’ perspective.'
Dr Joe Bush, investigator for the AMAS added: 'We identified numerous groups in which adherence levels were lower than in the general population, but it is not possible at this time to identify why adherence is lower in these groups.
'Whilst the focus groups suggested possible reasons for non-adherence, we hope to explore these issues further and identify the primary reasons for non-adherence in these patient groups in future research.'
