Open AccessDeterminants affecting medication adherence in the elderly: A qualitative study
Author(s) -
Bastani Peivand,
Bikineh Parisa,
Ravangard Ramin,
Rezaee Rita,
Kavosi Zahra
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
aging medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2475-0360
DOI - 10.1002/agm2.12132
Subject(s) - thematic analysis , affect (linguistics) , qualitative research , psychological intervention , sociocultural evolution , medicine , psychology , health care , medication adherence , gerontology , nursing , sociology , social science , communication , anthropology , economics , economic growth
Objective Due to high rates of irrational use of medicines and low rates of medication adherence among older Iranian patients, this study aimed to explore the determinants of medication adherence in the elderly. Methods This qualitative study was conducted in 2019 via 20 semi‐structured interviews with a purposeful sample of elderly people and health‐care personnel. Transcript data were analyzed applying thematic analysis. MAXQDA 10 was used for thematic analysis and presenting a thematic map. Results Two main themes appeared as the main determinants of medication adherence: individual determinants and external determinants. Other results show that there were six sub‐themes and 23 main categories in this regard. The sub‐themes were as follows: consumption disorder, consumption acceptance, delinquency, forgetfulness, sociocultural factors, and others’ impacts. Conclusions Different individual and external factors can affect elderly people’s medication adherence. Considering the significance of this issue for the health of elderly people and the whole community, positive changes are needed to manage the medication‐adherence process. Basic and scientific planning, appropriate interventions, and comprehensive collaboration among all health‐system levels are required for implementing such changes.