What Are The Underlying Factors Influencing Compliance To Medication?

RESEARCH CRITIQUES AND PICOT STATEMENTS FINAL DRAFT Name Institution Research Critiques and PICOT Statements Final Draft PICO: In patients with depression (P), Will nursing education about the necessity to continue taking medication (I) compared to no education (C) increase medication compliance (O) Background Study Medication compliance and its lack thereof in the treatment of patients suffering from various disorders is integral to the outcome of the therapeutic regimen adopted in diagnosing the disorders. Non-compliance with medication is one of the greatest challenges facing the healthcare industry around the world and whose repercussions not only affect the individual patient but also their immediate environment in equal measure. The fact that medication for a wide range of diseases or disorders proves to be effective in their curative purpose when taken in accordance to the prescription fails to fully convince or rather encourage and improve compliance to medication by itself. It costs the United States’ healthcare industry approximately 100 billion dollars annually in dealing with complications arising from non-compliance with medication. Besides reducing or lowering the quality of life for the non-compliant patients, non-adherence is also a major cause of workplace frustrations among medical practitioners. Research into factors influencing compliance to medication fails to come up with working and applicable solutions that would reverse the negative impacts of non-compliance while also encouraging patients to adhere to the various therapeutic regimens from their doctors. It is on that premise that this research study tries to outline the underlying factors affecting compliance to medication while also trying to find a lasting or rather a more substantive solution to address the discouraging surge in non-adherence to medication. Research questions -What are the underlying factors influencing compliance to medication? -How effective have previous studies addressed the issue of compliance to medication? The questions cover the wide scope of the study as it endeavors to fill in the gaps left by previous quantitative and qualitative studies on compliance with medication. In view of the existing gaps, the study further seeks to propose a change of practice in the management of non-compliance to medication based on its findings on the underlying factors proved to have a direct correlation to compliance. Methods of Study The study basis its research and findings on reviewing articles that find common ground on the inadequacies of the previous studies conducted across both the qualitative and quantitative ends. The articles, Taking or not taking medications: psychiatric treatment perceptions in patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder, for instance, uses a qualitative design analyzing the feedback of about 50 patients diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder type 1 from semi-structured interviews CITATION IVa14 \l 1033 (Huicochea, 2014). The focus of this particular study is to reveal the often sidelined opinion and perception of patients towards the prescribed medication to their diagnostic problems. The study further refers to the quantitative analysis of journal articles and literature on compliance to medication. Keywords such as health beliefs, patient compliance, adherence, and topics of interest including variables that influence compliance were used in the search and selection criteria for articles suited for the research study CITATION EVe01 \l 1033 (E. Vermeire., 2001). The authors provide articulate details through informative literature reviews of their respective study focus pertaining to compliance with medication which forms a substantive standpoint for this research study. Results of Study The study established that compliance to medication for any disease or disorder is influenced to a large extent by the patients themselves. Additionally, proposed interventions carried out through clinical trials, randomized controlled trials, and also on the premise of the social cognitive theory were found to be ineffective in their respective capacities as measures to enhance medication compliance. Instead, the study provides a comprehensive and elaborate definition of compliance from the perspective of both the patient and the caregivers while seeking to unveil the often overlooked but essential primary role, responsibility, and mandate that the former has in affecting adherence to medication CITATION EVe01 \l 2057 (E. Vermeire., 2001). The study establishes that factors such as patient’s information on a disease, the efficacy of prescribed medication and its sid...