This research was motivated by the need to understand
how participants with multiple comorbid
conditions dealt with adherence to complex
medication regimens that resulted from multiple
prescribed medications and whether and to what
extent they sought help from their providers on
navigating the complexities of medication taking.
A compelling finding of this study is participants'
perceptions of a lack of shared decision making with
their doctors in the management of their comorbid
chronic conditions and multiple medications when
this was introduced as a topic in the focus groups.
With one exception, the participants were unable
to articulate whether their doctors or health care
team discussed the multiple medications prescribed
to them or helped them design a tailored medication
and self-care management plan. In lieu of a doctor—
patient-devised management plan, participants used
their resources to adhere (optimally or suboptimally)
to their medication regimens, at the risk of undermanagement
of their chronic conditions. Data seem
to suggest that medication adherence is negatively
affected when participants reach a personal threshold
or saturation point that stems from additions or
changes to their medication schedule, resulting in doctor[ing]" themselves.