Improving adherence and promoting behavioral change

Abstract

Treatment adherence consists of behaviors employed to follow recommendations by healthcare professionals with the goal of appropriate management or primary prevention of a disease state. Medication compliance is most commonly associated with treatment adherence. Other examples include lifestyle and behavior changes, such as following specific diet or exercise recommendations, complying with referrals to specialists and adhering to primary preventive practices like vaccinations. Identification of adherence problems is essential for medical providers as part of ongoing medical treatment and planning. Nonadherence can lead to significant medical repercussions and high medical costs (Brody 2017). Multiple factors contribute to treatment nonadherence. Among these factors are forgetfulness, cost, medication side effects, health-belief models, illness response and severity, as well as a myriad of intersecting psychosocial and healthcare system factors. Addressing these issues is a critical component to improving adherence.