Abstract

In the United States, nearly 33% to 69% of hospital admissions are due to poor adherence to medication, costing the industry $100 billion each year. Improving adherence to medication among older adults has become a challenging and pressing problem. Medication adherence is a complex behavior influenced by patients’ beliefs and knowledge related to their therapeutic treatment. Informed by Becker’s Health Belief Model and Bandura’s Self-Efficacy Model, twenty-six older adults in two community centers in San Juan, Puerto Rico were interviewed to explore medication adherence within the context of medication regimen, medication effectiveness, medication management, medication side effects, and medication cost. The following descriptive themes emerged as contributing factors for medication adherence: (a) patient health condition(s) and treatment perception, (b) medication side effects, (c) patient time preference for taking medication, (d) family support, (e) health insurance treatment coverage and (f) increased health decline as a result of aging. The most prominent influencers for medication adherence were treatment perception, knowledge of disease and understanding of treatment prescribed, medication management preferences, and family support. The study findings highlight the need to develop innovative programs to improve adherence among older adults with chronic diseases.