3.6. Pragmatism and Routines: Integration of Medication
into Daily Life. The most frequently mentioned barrier to
medication adherence was a lack of a structured routine or
a change in the existing routine (88% mentioned routine)
for self-administering BP medications (Table 4). Patients
reported greatest success when they were able to seamlessly
integrate their medication into their daily life. Patients had
difficulty when schedules and routines were interrupted
unless they had coping strategies to deal with these issues
(e.g., carrying around extra pills and traveling with pill
boxes).Of the 81% of respondents that commented onmissed
doses, 54% denied missing any dose and 27% reported that
they “sometimes” missed a dose either due to forgetting or
a change in routine. When asked what would happen if a
dose was missed, respondents reported that they would take
the next scheduled dose (and by doing so, they would miss
a dose). Additionally, some stated that they may experience
some side effects (headache, BP fluctuations, and feeling
tired) from a missed dose. Monetary issues were only cited
by 8% of patients.