Patient Adherence: Challenges, Myths, and Realities

Abstract

Compliance or adherence to treatment by patients is a huge worldwide problem, and the impact of poor adherence will grow as the burden of chronic disease and its comorbidities increases, and doctors persist to utilize a prescriptive approach. Lack of adherence erodes health outcomes and increases the costs of medical care. Adherence is an important modifier of the effectiveness of healthcare, and improvements enhance patients’ safety and well-being. Adherence is the result of multiple factors, including health beliefs, the personal model of disease, patients’ satisfaction with medical services, communication, and the quality of care received. In the light of the increase of diabetes, the crucial role of patients as implementers of treatment needs to be recognized, measured, and anticipated. Implementing effective adherence interventions will have a greater impact on the health of the population than modern medical therapies that patients are unwilling to take. Patients need to be supported, not blamed for their shortcomings to achieve the expected clinical outcomes; they and their families are responsible for their self-care; their efforts are decisive for the success of medical interventions.