The Power of Medication Adherence Packaging
The Solution.
The pharmacist’s role
Pharmacists are the most accessible healthcare provider. Because pharmacists are present in most communities, they can offer medication-related advice and counselling to practically anyone at no cost. Likewise, pharmacists can help promote medication adherence among their patients. Various studies indicate how patient counselling and pharmacist interventions improve adherence and lower healthcare costs.
A key role of the pharmacist involves patient counselling. These interactions often occur when patients start a new prescription or when patients have questions about their medication. One study aimed to evaluate how community pharmacists could impact statin adherence through face-to-face counselling. One group received two pharmacist consultations six months apart. The comparator group did not receive any counselling. Patients who received pharmacist consultations had a 8.6% higher MPR than the comparison group. This research demonstrates the importance of pharmacist intervention in promoting adherence12.
Patients who receive counselling from their pharmacist have been shown to have higher adherence rates
Community pharmacists can also engage in medication therapy management (MTM) services. In MTM, pharmacists review and assess a patient’s medication list and medical history. After assessment, pharmacists can make interventions to improve medication use, decrease the risk of adverse events, and educate patients. These services can also help to better medication adherence. One study evaluated how MTM affected adherence in renal transplant recipients. Results indicated patients who were eligible for MTM services were more likely to be adherent compared with patients that were not eligible for MTM services13.
Pharmacists are present in most communities and can offer medication-related advice and counselling to practically anyone at no cost.
