Medication adherence enhancement among patients with schizophrenia is important for prevention of relapse in this group of patients.
objective The purpose of this descriptive study was to analyze medication adherence enhancement among patients with schizophrenia.
method Purposive sampling was used to select 10 schizophrenic patients who were re-admitted at Suanprung Psychiatric hospital, Chiang Mai, 10 caregivers of those patients and eight mental health personnel. Data collection was undertaken during June to August, 2010. Research instruments included 1) demographic data, 2) the Mental Status Questionnaire, 3) an interview guideline for individual and group and 4) observation form, which were developed by the researcher based on literature review. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and content analysis.
result The study results revealed as follows; 1) The schizophrenic patients had methods to enhance their adherence to medication including seeking knowledge on disease and medication, managing on self-medicine-taking and found barrier factors of medication adherence including patient related factors, medication related factors and social related factors. 2) The caregivers of schizophrenic there were methods including seeking knowledge on disease and medication, managing patients on medicine-taking continuity and found barrier factors of medication adherence including patient related factors and social related factors. 3) The health personnel there were practices and methods including providing knowledge on disease and medication to patients and caregivers, finding the cause of non-adherence to medication, managing for patients to have medication adherence and a shortage of health personnel, no guidelines for practice, and the patient’s own factors. 4) Methods to enhance adherence to medication follow the opinion were the schizophrenic patients, the caregivers and the health personnel were providing knowledge on disease and medication to patients and caregivers, developing innovation to enhance patient medication adherence, conducting support group for exchanging experience in medication adherence among the schizophrenic patients, developing a clinic to provide counseling specifically about medication and the financial support.