Medication adherence and patient satisfaction among hypertensive patients attending outpatient clinic in Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Low adherence is an essential element responsible for impaired effectiveness and efficiency in the pharmacological treatment of hypertension. Patient satisfaction is an important measure of healthcare quality and is a crucial determinant of patients' perspective on behavioural intention. AIMS: This study determined the association between medication adherence and treatment satisfaction among hypertensive patients attending hypertension outpatient clinic in Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Setting - The study setting was LUTH; a descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted. Study design - Hypertensive patients were consecutively recruited from the outpatient clinic. Medication adherence was assessed using the 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale and treatment satisfaction was assessed using the 14-item Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire for Medication. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Univariate and linear regression analyses were conducted using STATA software version 14.1 (StataCorp LP, College Station, TX, USA). Statistical significance was set at P ≤ 0.05. RESULTS: A total of 500 respondents with a mean age of 58.9 ± 13.3 years participated in the study. Overall, majority (446 [89.2%]) of the respondents in this study had 'moderate' adherence to antihypertensive medication. However, only five (1.0%) respondents reported 'high' adherence. Mean scores were highest in the moderate adherence category for all satisfaction domains and overall domain. Treatment satisfaction was associated with medication adherence, and was statistically significant (P = 0.000). CONCLUSION: One in every hundred patients had high adherence to hypertensive medication in this study, and there was a positive association between treatment satisfaction and medication adherence. Continuous patient-specific and tailored adherence education and counselling for hypertensive patients is recommended.