MEDICATION
NONCOMPLIANCE:WHAT WE KNOW, WHAT WE NEED TO LEARN
Albert I.WERTHEIMER*,o, Thomas M. SANTELLA**
*Center for Pharmeutýcal Health Services
Research, Temple University School of Pharmacy,3307 N.
Broad Street, Philadephia, PA 19140
**Center for Pharmacutical Health Services Research, Temple
University School of Pharmacy.
oCorresponding author e-mail:albert.wertheimer@temple.edu
Summary:
Noncompliance is a major worldwide medical problem and
concordantly, there have been numerous studies and reports
performed to define the meaning of the problem as well
as to make suggestions. Researchers, however, in their
effort to explore all facets of the current compliance
situation, have produced a complex construct, making it
exceedingly diffucult for clinicians and researchers to
understand the problem. This review unifies the current
spectrum of compliance literature in order to outline
and clarify the adherence situation. A variety of research
sources were used, including
PubMed and MEDLINE searches, university medical library
searches, general Internet searches, and clinical text
review. the result was a categorisation of the literature
into six segments, including the causes of noncompliance
and possible solutions, articles identifying adherence
as a problem, anaysis of adherence with respect to specific
ailments, and exploration of the pharmacist’s role, the
patient’s role, and the physician’s role with respect
to compliance. After exploration and synthesis of the
current literature, we suggest that future research concentrate
on the practitioner for a better understanding of the
medication compliance situation and on the creation of
a universal method of ensuring adherence.
Keywords:
Adherence, Noncompliance, Patient adherence, Patient compliance.
