About This Topic

Welcome to this lesson on factors affecting adherence. Evaluation of a patient’s treatment regimen is an important part of continuing patient care. In asthma, patient non-adherence has been described as “an intractable and pervasive obstacle to effective treatment… and contributes significantly to poor outcomes in the treatment of asthma.”¹ Studies have shown non-adherence results in increased hospitalization. Adherence rates in children with asthma are often below 50% due to patient and treatment related barriers. Patient motivation is seen as the most critical factor.

Assessment of a patient’s adherence to their treatment plan goes hand-in-hand with evaluating the treatment plan itself. But before a provider can evaluate adherence, it is important to understand the factors that affect adherence. In this lesson you will learn to identify these factors.

People often use the words adherence and compliance interchangeably. For the purposes of this lesson we will use the word adherence. While these terms can be used interchangeably, there are subtle differences in the attitude towards the patient that will be discussed in the lecture.

¹Bender, B. "Overcoming barriers to nonadherence in asthma treatment." J Allergy Clin Immunol 109(5) S554-9.

What you will learn

After you complete this lesson you will be able to do the following:

• Identify factors that influence patient/family adherence.
• Identify how various factors affecting adherence are interrelated.

 

To get the most out of this lesson

To learn more from this lesson we recommend that you approach it in the following way:

• Proceed through the sidebar items from top to bottom. Go through the course by using the sidebar links. Take the quiz last.
• Keep in mind the importance of adherence in the successful treatment of illness.