Pilot Study on the Use of Reminder Packaging in Improving Adherence and Blood Pressure Control Among Hypertensive Patients in the Uganda Heart Institute.
Keywords:
Adherence, anti-hypertensive, blood pressure, reminder packaging, self-administered, UgandaAbstract
Background
Hypertension is a major global public health challenge that is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates. Poor medication adherence means the management of hypertension remains unsatisfactory. Non-intentional forgetfulness accounts for around 49.6% of medication non-adherence. Reminder packaging is a measure that has been experimented with in developed countries and has shown improved medication adherence, although limited data exist on its effectiveness in developing countries with resource constraints. Therefore, piloting its use in improving medication adherence and blood pressure control among hypertensive patients in Uganda Heart Institute to ascertain its effectiveness in developing countries like Uganda is paramount.
Objective
To pilot the use of reminder packaging in improving adherence and blood pressure control in hypertensive patients on long-term self-administered medications in Uganda Heart Institute, Uganda.
Methods
This study used a longitudinal quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test design with one study group. We purposively enrolled 18 participants (10% of the calculated main sample size) with poorly controlled hypertension receiving antihypertensive medications who had reported forgetfulness as a challenge. Participants were given a 7-day pillbox to organize their antihypertensive medications and followed up for 6 weeks. Data were collected pre-and post-test, including blood pressure and adherence level (Morisky Medication Adherence Scale; MMAS-8). Paired sample t-tests were used to analyze changes between pre- and post-tests.
Results
The use of reminder packaging improved adherence to self-administered antihypertensive medication with a mean difference of 4.833 on the MMAS-8 (t=11.042, P<0.01). There were statistically significant reductions in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure (P<0.01).
Conclusion
Reminder packaging is a useful tool to aid pill planning and enhance medication adherence among patients with
hypertension.
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