New Report Finds Medication Adherence Tactics Work

A new report from AHRQ’s Effective Health Care Program found that a variety of methods are effective at improving medication adherence among patients with diabetes and other chronic conditions. Patients managed for most chronic illnesses, including diabetes, asthma, heart disease, and depression, were more consistently likely to follow their medication instructions when given an incentive such as reduced out-of-pocket prescription drug costs or improved prescription drug coverage. Case management and educational interventions were also found to improve medication adherence. The strongest evidence came from studies using medication self-management for asthma patients, collaborative care or case management for patients taking drugs for depression, and pharmacist-led approaches to improve systolic blood pressure in hypertensive patients. The study, led by Meera Viswanathan, Ph.D., at AHRQ’s RTI-University of North Carolina Evidence-based Practice Center, found limited evidence as to whether the approaches studied can be broadly applied for chronic conditions and patient populations. Researchers also found limited evidence for long-term medication adherence or impacts on health outcomes. The review is part of a larger initiative, Closing the Quality Gap: Revisiting the State of the Science, and builds on an earlier AHRQ series of evidence reports, Closing the Quality Gap: A Critical Analysis of Quality Improvement Strategies. Select to read the report, “Medication Adherence Interventions: Comparative Effectiveness.” An article on this report was published September 11 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Select to access the abstract on PubMed.®

Executive Summary – Sept. 11, 2012