MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'adherence'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 02:04:17 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5140259&cid=t_156302_147_f&fid=39273&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2Fql2N04t8GRU%2Fepharma-west-analytics-when-where-and.html Measuring Digital Marketing Toward Supporting Patient Adherence & Consumer Education Peter Frishauf, Non-executive Chairman of the Board, Crossix Solutions Inc Jeremy Mittler, Analytics Services Director, Crossix Solutions Inc Frishauf Crossix Solutions Inc helps match patient/consumer data to prescription data to help link effective medicine. This company innovates for Pharma in the digital space with patient adherence. Three out of four patients aren’t adherent which results in 125,000 deaths a year. Over $310 billion dollars a year is the cost of non-adherence. Digital is playing an increasing role in improving adherence. How can you measure that your adherence campaigns are successful? Reaching Existing Patients: Direct to Consumer efforts leads to 51% existing pati... ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5140259 Tue, 26 Jul 2011 21:05:00 +0100 5140259 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5036228&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fconfusing-compliance-with-engagement-in-our-health-care%2F2011.07.17 Twenty percent of people who leave their doctors’ offices with a new prescription don’t fill it. Up to one-half of those who do fill their prescriptions don’t take the drugs as recommended. These individuals are considered non-compliant. But does that mean they are not engaged in their health care? Engagement and compliance are not synonyms. I am compliant if I do what my doctor tells me to do. I am engaged, on the other hand, when I actively participate in the process of solving my health problems. This new prescription is an element in that process. If I am engaged in my care, I might want to learn about this medication. Such as:  what it can and cannot do to ease my pain or slow the progress of my disease; what side effects it might produce and what I should do about them; how l... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5036228 Sun, 17 Jul 2011 18:00:40 +0100 5036228 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4997516&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FbcwS0CtcGjg%2F By Glenna Crooks. On June 20, New York Times writer Tara Parker-Pope wrote about how FICO, the company with the scores that describe our credit worthiness, has developed a new FICO Medication Adherence Scores to determine – using public, but not medical, information – who is likely to skip or incorrectly use medications. Over the next year, 10 million people will likely be scored (without their knowing it, by the way) within a rage of 0-500. Those over 400 would be deemed ‘likely’ to use medication appropriately; those with lower scores would receive calls, cards, letters or some other intervention to boost their rates of adherence. Halfway into the article, my HIPAA-involved policy-wonk self went bonkers. True, they don’t use medical records information but the fact that without... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4997516 Mon, 04 Jul 2011 13:07:17 +0100 4997516 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4862546&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fno-single-intervention-can-cure-poor-medication-adherence%2F2011.05.25 You are sick with something-or-other and your doctor writes you a prescription for a medication.  She briefly tells you what it’s for and how to take it.  You go to the pharmacy, pick up the medication, go home and follow the instructions, right?  I mean, how hard could it be? Pretty hard, it appears.  Between 20 percent to 80 percent of us – differing by disease and drug – don’t seem to be able to do it. There are, of course, many reasons we aren’t.  Drugs are sometimes too pricey, so we don’t fill the prescription. Or we buy them and then apply our ingenuity to making them last longer by splitting pills and otherwise experimenting with the dosage. Some drugs have to be taken at specific times or under specific conditions, posing little challenge when you are taking only ... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4862546 Wed, 25 May 2011 12:00:37 +0100 4862546 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4780363&cid=t_156302_113_f&fid=35744&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fe-CareManagement%2F%7E3%2Fdr1BHsnJvvw%2F This report also explores the concerns that come with patient engagement and the advantages and strategies that should be explored. (more…) Tags: health reform, medical home, wellness (Source: e-CareManagement) e-CareManagement blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4780363 Tue, 03 May 2011 16:46:12 +0100 4780363 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4704582&cid=t_156302_86_f&fid=36669&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffadelibrary.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F04%2F11%2Fnursing-times-2011-vol-107-no-13%2F Fade Fave: Why do patients fail to follow long term treatment? Fade Skinny: Trying to stick to diabetes regimens for six weeks gave 8 members of a paediatric diabetes team an insight of the issues around adherence to treatment. The outcomes from this trial forced the team to question their expectations of children and young people with diabetes and those of their parents. Contact the Library for a copy of this article Filed under: Current Awareness, Journals Tagged: Diabetes, Long Term Conditions, Medication Adherence (Source: Fade Library) Fade Library blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4704582 Mon, 11 Apr 2011 15:21:22 +0100 4704582 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4536451&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FF1tWDgOPbVU%2F Hello, everyone, and nice to see you again. A mild and sunny day is unfolding here on the Pharmalot corporate campus, where the dogs are barking and a needed cup of stimulation is brewing. What does today hold in store? Meetings and deadlines, no doubt. We relate. So to help you along, we have gathered a few tidbits. Let us know if you come across something noteworthy yourselves. Meanwhile, have a good one… FDA Rejects MS Pill From Merck KGgA (Reuters) Roche Gets EU Backing For Avastin For Breast Cancer (MarketWatch) Celgene Discloses Fed Probe Of Cancer Drug Marketing (Dow Jones) Glaxo Offer To Pay Trainee Tuition Fees (BBC News) Glaxo HIV Drugs Not Tied To Heart Risks (Bloomberg News) Judge Rules Patent Settlement Documents To Remain Sealed (Dow Jones) Poor Health Literacy Leads To... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4536451 Wed, 02 Mar 2011 12:40:14 +0100 4536451 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4470452&cid=t_156302_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2011%2F02%2F12%2Fwhats-in-a-name-schizophrenia-revisited%2F The discussion about a new name for schizophrenia gives us patients an opportunity to present afresh what our condition is really like, warts and all. It gives us the chance to present a more accurate picture — to be honest and open and get away from the misleading and mystifying image of a split mind or split personality. In this way we can tackle inaccurate and often sensational reporting by journalists and editors working for newspapers, radio and television. We need to emphasize that some of us — but not all — are on a recovery route, although for the large majority a complete recovery is not attainable. Some of us take our medicines faithfully; some of us do not need to; and some of us who do need to, do not take them: maybe they have been frightened off by a stigma... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4470452 Sat, 12 Feb 2011 10:35:25 +0100 4470452 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4433329&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FduD93FOfi9U%2F Patrick Soon-Shiong, a billionaire who cut a controversial profile in the pharmaceutical industry, has reemerged and purchased Vitality, a private company with a device designed to remind patients to take their meds. Known as GlowCaps, these use wireless technology that is housed in the cap to generate reminders and refill alerts in the form of phone calls, e-mails and ringtones, as well as usage reports for docs. The move reflects the ongoing preoccupation with patient adherence in the pharmaceutical industry. A recent report by the New England Healthcare Institute found that poor adherence costs the US as much as $290 billion a year in unnecessary health care spending (full disclosure: we are co-sponsoring a conference on this topic in May). In general, the weak economy has meant fewer p... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4433329 Thu, 03 Feb 2011 13:40:54 +0100 4433329 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4419072&cid=t_156302_86_f&fid=36669&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffadelibrary.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F31%2Fbritish-journal-of-general-practice-2011-vol-61-no-583%2F This article explores the benefits of reusable plastic containers used for taking medicines that are divided into days and weeks, also known as multicompartmental compliance aids. (Print subscription held at Fade Library) Filed under: Journals Tagged: Medication Adherence, Medication Systems, Qualitative Research (Source: Fade Library) Fade Library blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4419072 Mon, 31 Jan 2011 10:40:28 +0100 4419072 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4331007&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FCpt5CQex6T0%2F By Jane Sarasohn-Kahn. For every $1 spent on health care in the U.S., 10 cents goes to prescription drugs, 31 cents goes to hospital care, and 27 cents goes to professionals (doctors, dentists, and other services), based on 2009 health spending reported to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). There’s evidence that by spending a bit more on medication and bolstering prescription drug adherence among patients, total health spending can be lowered for vascular medical conditions. The study and data which leads to this conclusion is published in Medication Adherence Leads to Lower Health Care Use And Costs Despite Increased Drug Spending appears in the January 2011 issue of Health Affairs. The study cites the World Health Organization’s report from 2003 that stated med... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4331007 Tue, 11 Jan 2011 13:00:12 +0100 4331007 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4117954&cid=t_156302_146_f&fid=38266&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsleepeducation.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F10%2Fdedication-to-cpap-takes-positive.html (Source: Sleep Education) Sleep Education blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4117954 Fri, 29 Oct 2010 16:20:00 +0100 4117954 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4055955&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=34889&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmamkting.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F10%2Fpre-emptive-medication-adherence-is-pre.html Computers are intruding into our lives more and more these days. I'm not talking necessarily about the Internet, but about automated programs that different industries use to do things like initiate stock market trades without human intervention, which is a story I saw last night on 60 Minutes. It's reputed that one such trade sent the market in a momentary tailspin that could have lead to a monetary crisis. According experts, such automated trades are undermining the general public's trust in the stock market. I for one have taken a lot of my retirement money out of stocks.Today I read about how Express Scripts, a pharmacy benefit management (PBM) company, is now able to accurately predict up to a year in advance which patients are most at risk of falling off their physician-prescribed dr... Pharma Marketing Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4055955 Mon, 11 Oct 2010 15:19:00 +0100 4055955 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3959967&cid=t_156302_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2010%2F09%2F11%2Fin-memory-of-911-2010%2F Today was the 9th anniversary of 9/11 and I have little to say, other than to commemorate the people who lost their lives in that tragedy. Such random acts of violence seem senseless because they are. We try and make sense of them by putting them into some sort of context or definition (e.g., “terrorism”), but at the end of the day, there’s little sense to killing thousands of innocent lives. Although anger is still prevalent when we think of the lives lost that day, 9 years ago, we shouldn’t allow such anger cloud rationality and adherence to the principles that make us Americans. The ridiculous assertions against a mosque and community center, built somewhere in the vicinity of the footprints of the World Trade center, suggests that somehow the Constitution could... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3959967 Sat, 11 Sep 2010 23:10:18 +0100 3959967 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3907602&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fthe-health-hive-is-it-ready-for-primetime%2F2010.08.26 Maybe not according to this report from the CDC. They studied Internet use with respect to adherence behavior and a number of health-related outcomes. It suggests that folks who diss the doc in favor of the Internet may not do as well as we think. This quote caught me: The data also revealed that personal determinants such as neuroticism (reflects anxiety and emotionality) and health-related poorer quality of life differentiated internet-instigated non-adherent respondents from their counterparts. More plainly put: If you trust your life to an anonymous guy on Twitter with the handle @YourHealthGuru, you might not do as well as if you partnered with a trained professional. Or perhaps I’m reading too much into the study. (more…) *This blog post was originally published at... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3907602 Thu, 26 Aug 2010 16:00:05 +0100 3907602 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3848871&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fwhat-do-doctors-know-about-their-unemployed-patients%2F2010.08.09 Anyone who’s ever been downsized or otherwise lost a job knows the feelings: Personal loss (social, financial and routine), self doubt, and in some cases fear of what the future will bring. Unemployment and its cousin, underemployment, are not subjects that a lot of people are comfortable brining up in polite conversation — even with their doctor. Given today’s tough economic environment, chances are that 15 to 20 percent of the people sitting in most doctors’ waiting rooms are out of work. Do you know who they are? You should. (more…) *This blog post was originally published at Mind The Gap* (Source: Better Health) Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3848871 Mon, 09 Aug 2010 16:00:36 +0100 3848871 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3714443&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FmA4PGY91Dv4%2F Where is direct-to-consumer advertising headed this year? Which activities will garner a bigger share of the budget than others? Celebrity endorsements? Product placements? Patient education? To get a grip, Cegedim Dendrite surveyed 199 folks from drugmakers, ad agencies and consultants, and learned that 51 percent say DTC will be more effective this year, while 45 percent say it will be less effective. They also learned that… Overall, the DTC spending outlook is brighter - 41 percent believe spending will increase this year, which is up from 20 percent last year. However, 31 percent expect DTC spending will stay the same, while 54 percent of those who foresee lower spending say funds will be shifted to different programs. Such as? 19 percent say a shift to targeted direct-to-patient... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3714443 Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:52:11 +0100 3714443 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3659153&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=34889&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmamkting.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F06%2Ftake-your-medicine-win-lottery-void.html New England Healthcare Institute (NEHI), a nonprofit research organization with ties to the pharmaceutical industry, health insurers and academia, estimates that one third to one half of all patients in the U.S. do not take their medications as prescribed by their doctors. [Actually, regarding that percentage, NEHI may be quoting the World Health Organization, which may be getting its figures from the pharmaceutical industry, which may just be making them up.]"Adherence" is the technical term used by the pharma industry for "following doctor's orders" about taking medication. NEHI suggests many reasons for the poor "adherence" behavior of Americans, including:costside effectsthe challenge of managing multiple prescriptions (polypharmacy)patients’ understanding of their diseaseforgetfulne... Pharma Marketing Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3659153 Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:11:00 +0100 3659153 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3283846&cid=t_156302_165_f&fid=37959&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthskills.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F02%2F18%2Fdo-patients-take-their-medications%2F I don’t often write about medications, not because I don’t believe in their use but because that’s not my focus.  However, just to put the record straight: medications and medical management of chronic pain has a place in the model of pain management I use.  After all, it is the ‘bio-psychosocial’ model, not the psychosocial one! I am interested in how often people follow the advice of their health providers, because if my aim is for people to manage their pain by themselves I really would like them to go away having tried something and knowing whether it is helpful or not.  A treatment can’t be useful if the person doesn’t actually give it a good go. So something I usually ask about is how closely a person follows the advice of a doctor with re... HealthSkills Weblog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3283846 Wed, 17 Feb 2010 18:25:20 +0100 3283846 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3026671&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FDI_W0AIptOI%2F Between October and November 2009, Disruptive Women in Health Care analyzed the issues surrounding Drug Adherence and issued a series of posts from a variety of viewpoints and perspectives. In addition to our own pool of experts, Disruptive Women invited a number of guests to post on this complex public health topic. We compiled all the posts into an e-book. We hope you will find this a useful reference. Please feel free to share, cross post and distribute with others who would find this of interest. As always, we welcome your feedback and comments. All the posts remain on the blog and it’s not too late to comment on specific posts. Download a free copy of the “Drug Adherence Throwdown” e-book. (Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care) Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3026671 Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:05:40 +0100 3026671 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2995732&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FAOsRF2LBh0Q%2F The following guest post — part of Disruptive Women’s drug adherence series — is written by Valerie Fleishman, Executive Director, New England Healthcare Institute. Patient adherence represents a rare “win-win” in health care, so it’s no surprise that all sectors have been busy seeking potential solutions. Technology companies have developed reminder gadgets, employers have redesigned benefit plans to remove cost barriers to chronic disease medications, pharmaceutical companies have developed combination drugs to simplify regimens, and providers have begun implementing new patient education and counseling techniques. However, efforts to date have remained largely sector specific and silo-ed. An earlier post by Janet Wright correctly pointed out that poor adherence ... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2995732 Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:39:07 +0100 2995732 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2981071&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2F1Exa8AGWP4o%2F The following guest post on the subject of drug adherence is written by Janet Wright, Senior Vice President, Science & Quality, at American College of Cardiology. If the Disruptive Women series on medication adherence has shown anything, it’s that there is a nearly endless number of potential solutions to address the nearly endless number of reasons patients and their prescribed medications do not “stick.”. Over decades of practice in cardiology, I had a first hand view of the challenges patients face in adherence – inability to afford the prescription to incomplete understanding of a med’s value or benefit to overestimating the risk to unclear directions or complex instructions on how and when to take the drugs.. Now, in a staff role at the American College of Cardiology, I ... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2981071 Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:09:10 +0100 2981071 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2973921&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FLHhIh9dps8s%2F The following guest post on the subject of drug adherence is written by Julie Murchinson, Founder, Health 2.0 Accelerator and Managing Director with Manatt Health Solutions. The tools are coming! The tools are coming! For a while now, tools to manage drug adherence have been developed, many designed to enable the patient to self-manage in the context of and in collaboration with the health care system from a specifically designed device or heavy application. Patient adoption, however, has been slow and the vision for self-management of drug adherence not yet reality. But recently from the budding Health 2.0 space, we are seeing tools built on more accessible web and mobile platforms that allow patients to manage when and where they want to with their mobile device (e.g. iPhone, Blackberry,... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2973921 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:57:11 +0100 2973921 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2967280&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FiC6_IgMA9XY%2F For those of you who are visiting our blog for the first time, you will notice several blog posts on the topic of drug adherence.  From time to time Disrutpive Women tackles a particularly vexing issue and runs a series of posts that we then compile into an e-book.   If you are interested in an overview of our current series, please read my first post. I invite you to take a look at our adherence posts–but don’t stop there.  Explore the archives and recent posts listed on the left hand side of the blog.  Read the bios of our authors and join in the conversation. (Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care) Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2967280 Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:01:02 +0100 2967280 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2967281&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2F2-meZ0-oH_Q%2F My initial enthusiasm for blogging on the subject of adherence policy “carrots and sticks” faded the more I contemplated the disputes that would arise by suggesting “sticks,” so mostly I’ll – pardon the pun – “stick” to “carrots.” In recent weeks these blog pages have been filled with ways to support patients: reviewing insights about human behavior, the young, the old, reminder systems, games and team care. In fact, this series could have continued all month and we’d not have exhausted the ways in which patients are supported, encouraged and cajoled to be adherent. Yes, we’ve dispensed plenty of sugar to make the medicine go down, but we’ve not proposed any “sticks” in the event it does not. Let’s face it; we’re not ready for the outrage in the public p... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2967281 Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:18:52 +0100 2967281 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2958846&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FZVFR1bYWuwo%2F This study, which included 375 male and female cancer patients aged 13 – 29, showed that those patients playing “Re-Mission” had higher drug adherence to both antibiotics and standard chemotherapy drugs. The assumption made in the study is that by playing “Re-mission”, the patients learned more about their disease and how they could control it through medication and chemotherapy. Similarly, two asthma-related multi-media games have demonstrated increased knowledge of asthma and decreased asthma symptom days (perhaps from better adherence to daily doses of inhaled corticosteroids). Games designed around diabetes (Packy and Marlon, Escape from Diab and Nanoswarm) have shown, or are in clinical trials to show, improved self-efficacy and self-management. In the Pa... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2958846 Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:28:45 +0100 2958846 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2954513&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FhtDlMF9n9YQ%2F The following post – part of Disruptive Women’s Drug Adherence Series – is by Stacey Irving of McKesson Patient Relationship Solutions. Poor medication adherence affects all of us in healthcare — it’s a problem that our entire industry is trying to tackle. By many estimates, more than 50% of patients aren’t taking their medications as prescribed. And that’s a real problem: it’s adding $177 billion in additional healthcare costs and contributing to sicker patients. Reports associate lack of adherence with 10% of hospital visits and 40% of nursing home admissions. At McKesson, we’re trying a new approach. We’ve partnered with pharmaceutical manufacturers to sponsor programs that get community pharmacists involved in promoting medication adherence. Independent ... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2954513 Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:59:02 +0100 2954513 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2954514&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FZCyLw4pjL-Y%2F For many years I was a caregiver and advocate for my family and friends. I discovered that taking their medications correctly was one of the main problems.  The struggle occurred mostly because they were often taking multiple medications prescribed by numerous physicians, and using various pharmacies to fill their prescriptions. This resulted in either missing medications, or taking them incorrectly, to simply becoming frustrated and not taking them at all.  This was especially true for my mother who was on 16 prescription and 6 over-the-counter medications when I decided to design a medication chart to assist her. That developed into a healthcare and medication  system, easy-to-use spiral notebook.  This can be seen on www.mymedmanager.com or on www.youtube.com/mymedmanager. Medicatio... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2954514 Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:06:34 +0100 2954514 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2950732&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2F6M5n_DTj85w%2F As our population ages the importance of one’s ability to remain independent as long as possible will become even more important than it is today. One of the leading causes for the placement of a frail adult in a nursing home is due to non-adherence to medication regimes. In fact, 10 to 25 percent of hospital and nursing home admissions annually are because of an individual’s lack of adherence. The American Academy of Nursing working with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has published practice guidelines for nurses working with the older adults in the community on the management of their medication. There are many risk factors that affect the individual’s adherence from physical ability to depression and beyond. We know that nursing interventions and evidenced based tra... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2950732 Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:03:11 +0100 2950732 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2943785&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.addresources.org%2Farticle_adhd_treatment_dodson.pdf If medication adherence is a problem for adults, consider how difficult it is for young people with chronic medical conditions. Alternate flavorings, formulations, and suspensions can help the medicine go down in children.  But what is the solution when taste is not the problem?  One approach we need to take is to put the young person center and first.  Talking past the child to the parents is a practice that continues today and even with many young adults patients.  If we want young people to succeed in self-medication management, they must be the drivers of their care. Child-centered care:  Psychoeducation: As soon as the child is able to participate, he needs to be educated about his condition and medication regimen so he understands what his happening to his body.  Participating... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2943785 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:34:07 +0100 2943785 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2939292&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.medicaretoday.org%2Fpdfs%2F2009survey.pdf Mary R. Grealy is president of the Healthcare Leadership Council, a coalition of chief executives of the nation’s leading health care companies and organizations.  She is also the author of Prognosis:  A Healthcare Blog which explores the nexus at which healthcare policy meets healthcare practice. If only it were an urban legend that senior citizens in the United States were cutting their physician-prescribed pills in half or ignoring their medications altogether in order to have enough money for food and utilities, but one doesn’t need academic studies to know that this kind of economically-forced non-adherence has too often been the case in our country. After Congress passed the Medicare Modernization Act (MMA), creating the Part D prescription drug program, the Healthcare Leadersh... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2939292 Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:36:07 +0100 2939292 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2934672&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FjFs857PC_mY%2F The following guest post — part of our Drug Adherence series — is by Elizabeth Sozanski, who is currently Senior Director, Global Brand Strategy, and is the former Adherence Leader for AstraZeneca. In that role, she was responsible for building the adherence strategy and initiatives in support of 5 largest brands; had a leading role in developing adherence-related partnerships with multiple healthcare partners; and served as the main interface to the organization for adherence best practices aimed at improving appropriate care and healthcare outcomes. In the many years that I’ve been with the pharmaceutical industry, few issues have been both as divisive and unifying the way medication adherence has, all at the same time. It’s divisive because various stakeholders in the h... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2934672 Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:10:27 +0100 2934672 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2930978&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amcp.org%2Fdata%2Fjmcp%2F244-252.pdf Last term, my Program Planning for Health Behavior Change workgroup was charged with using theory to help explain a health behavior and design a targeted intervention.  With several MDs in my group, we chose improving warfarin adherence to reduce risk of stroke in elderly patients with atrial fibrillation. 2.2 million Americans suffer from AF, a condition that causes a 4 to 5 fold increased risk for stroke. What is worse is that 5% of those ages 65+ have AF.  Luckily, warfarin is an inexpensive, generic drug that, if taken consistently and with regular physician monitoring, can reduce the risk of stroke for AF patients.   However, compliance is a problem and as a result non-compliant AF patients remain at risk for stroke. My group utilized a PRECEDE/PROCEED framework to conduct a hypot... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2930978 Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:02:37 +0100 2930978 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2924889&cid=t_156302_113_f&fid=35744&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fe-CareManagement%2F%7E3%2FSPUwceusf-k%2F Two slides from Mary Meeker’s presentation at Web 2.0 this week really caught my attention. Compare the proportions that “users pay” for desktop Internet services vs. mobile Internet services (the area inside the red lines — click on the graphics to see larger versions).   What do these slides tell us? (more…) Tags: eHealth, wireless (Source: e-CareManagement) e-CareManagement blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2924889 Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:45:08 +0100 2924889 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2920181&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2FhcBhgXVv0AU%2F The following guest post on the subject of drug adherence is written by Joyce A. Cramer. Joyce is Associate Research Scientist at Yale University School of Medicine as well as President of Epilepsy Therapy Project, a 501-c-3 organization accelerating new therapies for people with epilepsy. “Drugs don’t work in people who don’t take them” said former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop. While performing research on this topic since the 1980s, I have been continually surprised that the results are uniform: People take, on average, three-fourths of medication as prescribed1. This has held true across many diseases and types of medications. There seems to be no consequence so severe that everyone with that disorder takes all doses (e.g., organ transplantation, epilepsy, asthma, etc.). One ... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2920181 Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:34:06 +0100 2920181 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2912187&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.talkaboutrx.org%2Fdocuments%2Fenhancing_prescription_medicine_adherence.pdf As Robin illustrated in her post, poor medication adherence results in poor health outcomes for millions of Americans, and costs billions of dollars in increased medical costs.  When three-quarters of Americans concede they don’t take their prescription medications as directed, we are faced with a public health problem that demands a broad, multi-faceted response. As the nation’s oldest consumer organization, the National Consumers League has long worked to improve medication safety, patient education, and consumer education in the health community.  With planning funds from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), NCL is spearheading a first-of-its-kind national education campaign to raise consumer awareness of the importance of good medication adherence.  As called f... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2912187 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:18:55 +0100 2912187 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2912188&cid=t_156302_87_f&fid=38368&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FDisruptiveWomenInHealthCare%2F%7E3%2Fq4Tgg0q9eec%2F “What appears to be non-compliance from a medical perspective may actually be a form of asserting control over one’s own behavior.” I’ve always liked this characterization of patient adherence from Peter Conrad, The Meaning of Medication: Another Look at Compliance. It takes into account the fact that we’re dealing with people. What many times seems irrational to us as healthcare professionals, has most times been rationalized by the people for whom we provide care. Human behavior is complex. Behaviorists describe human development as a 4-part process: physical (how we grow or age), cognitive (how we think), emotional (how we feel) and social (how we are valued). In listening to (researching) tens of thousands of patients – across therapeutic categories – over the last tw... Disruptive Women in Health Care blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2912188 Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:10:16 +0100 2912188 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2865730&cid=t_156302_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2F06%2Fphone-psychotherapy-helps-depression%2F Imagine a treatment that was so powerful and useful, it could even be delivered by the telephone. That treatment? Good old psychotherapy. We’ve previously discussed the benefits of using web-based self-help programs for depression based upon proven cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques. And we’ve noted previous studies that showed the benefits of telephone therapy for depression. But this new 600-person study is the largest to date of psychotherapy by phone — and one of the largest studies of psychotherapy ever. Subjects in the study were randomly assigned to one of three groups — treatment as usual, telephone care management, and telephone care management + psychotherapy. People in the treatment as usual group continued to receive any treatments normally available... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2865730 Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:53:49 +0100 2865730 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2593105&cid=t_156302_99_f&fid=35344&url=http%3A%2F%2Fzackarysholemberger.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F07%2Fwhat-makes-it-more-likely-for-new.html Conclusions: Several factors associated with failing to fill an initial prescription for asthma can be addressed through simple interventions: screening for difficulties a patient may have in filling prescriptions, avoiding nonformulary medications, and recognizing the barrier that high copays present. In addition, for employers and policymakers, decreasing copay may improve adherence and, therefore, asthma control. (Source: Zackary Sholem Berger) Zackary Sholem Berger blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2593105 Sat, 11 Jul 2009 14:07:00 +0100 2593105 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2260377&cid=t_156302_135_f&fid=35274&url=http%3A%2F%2Facidrefluxweb.com%2F%3Fp%3D3158 I keep all my pills in nice and organized in a seven day am and pm box. One side has as fuchsia-ish colour, and the other a blue-y violet colour. The darker colour is opposite to the darker side of my old pill box, meaning it has switched from am to pm, or vice versa. I can’t remember at this moment, and that’s probably what the problem is. When my brain went on autopilot this morning I grabbed the pill box and took the evening pills. Not a big deal as all the HIV meds are almost the same, but the happy pills are another story. This afternoon I found myself getting really irritated about small things. Not to mention feeling really tired. That was probably the accidental am dose of the Lithium, and missed the Ciprolex. When dealing with booking some travel I found my patience level beco... acidrefluxweb.com blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2260377 Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:27:07 +0100 2260377 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2121705&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=34889&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmamkting.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F01%2Fadherence-programs-start-by.html (Source: Pharma Marketing Blog) Pharma Marketing Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2121705 Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:12:00 +0100 2121705 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2022737&cid=t_156302_165_f&fid=37959&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthskills.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F12%2F09%2Fwhen-patients-set-the-goals-of-therapy%2F This study was carried out in The Neurological Rehabilitation Unit at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, London, UK, and involved 200 in-patients, half of whom were involved in ‘normal practice’ and the other half were involved in a programme where increased participation in goal-setting was encouraged.  The patients had a range of neurological conditions including stroke, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord lesions, and a variety of other less common conditions like peripheral nerve disease and central nervous system tumours. This Unit has a care pathway, which is a set of interlinked goals relating to five main dimensions: (1) health maintenance, (2) cognitive functioning, (3) personal activities of daily living, (4) participation and (5) communication. Method... HealthSkills Weblog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2022737 Tue, 09 Dec 2008 07:17:52 +0100 2022737 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1927874&cid=t_156302_99_f&fid=35344&url=http%3A%2F%2Fzackarysholemberger.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F11%2Fpublic-appearances-1.html I got an award, so I'll be giving a talk at General Internal Medicine Grand Rounds at Johns Hopkins on November 14th. Drop by. (Source: Zackary Sholem Berger) Zackary Sholem Berger blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1927874 Sun, 02 Nov 2008 19:02:00 +0100 1927874 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1915808&cid=t_156302_165_f&fid=37959&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthskills.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F10%2F30%2Fhealth-literacy-if-you-cant-read-it-you-dont-get-it%2F For a long time I’ve been a fan of ‘plainspeak’ or eliminating gobbledegook.  I know my writing is often quite complex, but I try to write as if I’m talking directly to someone - and yes, I do use all those complicated words in real life! But after working in pain management for a while certain themes keep coming up, and one of them is the large number of people who don’t read and write well.  I value the concept of multiple intelligences, and some people are simply ‘practical’ and hands-on, and don’t like books much - but to actually not be able to read and write well enough to understand common labels and warnings and instructions, that is an incredible handicap. I have just been reading a paper by Don Nutbeam called ‘The evolving c... HealthSkills Weblog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1915808 Wed, 29 Oct 2008 18:27:11 +0100 1915808 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1892585&cid=t_156302_165_f&fid=37959&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthskills.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F10%2F22%2Ftwo-strikes-and-youre-out-referrals-and-readiness%2F I’m in a bit of a dilemma. As you know, health resources are scarce and it’s not easy to get an appointment for treatment of a chronic condition. There’s something to be said for making sure that our precious health care time isn’t wasted by people who would rather not be there. On the other hand, there is also something to be said for people being in the right headspace, or in more technical terms, the right stage of readiness to engage in therapy. If the person is referred for treatment before they’re ready, it’s going to be difficult for them to engage - and they may very well do the resistance thing that we see so often ‘yes, but’, ‘OK but’ or not actually do what we’ve suggested they do to help manage their condition. T... HealthSkills Weblog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1892585 Tue, 21 Oct 2008 18:29:33 +0100 1892585 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1704714&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=34889&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmamkting.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F08%2Frethinking-value-of-dtc-advertising.html This study says this happens only in 0.6% of visits! (See "Advertisers Don't Know How DTC Works. Say wha?").Keep in mind that not all those undiagnosed conditions will be treated by the advertised brand -- there may be generic brands available or the brand may not be appropriate for a particular patient or the condition may not lend itself to treatment by any drug at all!If you think about it, all this means that DTC advertising is a terribly inefficient method of getting people diagnosed and treated with the products that are advertised.Why then does the drug industry spend $5 billion annually on DTC advertising?Considering that some of the best minds in DTC advertising claim that they do not know how DTC works, I'd like to offer this:DTC is not an efficient means for generating new presc... Pharma Marketing Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1704714 Thu, 14 Aug 2008 11:50:00 +0100 1704714 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1436988&cid=t_156302_99_f&fid=35344&url=http%3A%2F%2Fzackarysholemberger.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F05%2Fpatient-docility.html Some call it patient compliance; the more current term is patient adherence. Retro is cool now, though. (I know a guy who wants to call Yiddish zhargon again [translation of headline: "Say it in Zhargon!".)So we might as well follow the retro trend and call it patient obedience. Just like they should have termed it with all honesty in the good old days. (Source: Zackary Sholem Berger) Zackary Sholem Berger blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1436988 Mon, 12 May 2008 20:33:00 +0100 1436988 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1409734&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=34889&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmamkting.blogspot.com%2F2008%2F04%2Finvasive-compliance-bitter-pill-to.html A World Health Organization (WHO) report—"Adherence to Long-Term Therapies"—estimates that between 30 and 50% of medicines prescribed for long-term illness are not taken as directed. "It is undeniable," says the WHO report, "that many patients experience difficulty in following treatment recommendations."No doubt this lack of Compliance and Adherence represents lost income to pharmaceutical companies. Yet, the industry spends very little marketing effort to capture this income by improving compliance and adherence. There are, of course, some exceptions. See the Pharma Marketing News article "Accomplishing Adherence," which chronicles Shire's effort to boost adherence in the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) market. [Also see this article: "Effective Pharma Adherence Progr... Pharma Marketing Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1409734 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:02:00 +0100 1409734 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1022191&cid=t_156302_150_f&fid=34889&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmamkting.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F11%2Faccomplishing-adherence-highlights-from.html Yesterday, I attended eyeforpharma's Patient Adherence and Persistence Summit and eCommunications/Online Marketing conferences in Philadelphia, PA. While there I met the usual suspects and reconnected with some old friends.Shire, Shire, ShirePeople from Shire -- specifically the Vyvanse (for children with ADHD) marketing folks -- were there in force making at least 3 presentations. Recall that Mike Boken, Senior Product Director at Shire, spoke about creating synergy between PR and marketing at a previous conference I attended (see "J&J Blog, Shire PR: The Whole Story and Nothing But the Whole Story!").I think the Shire people are out there laying the groundwork for Vyvanse, the new formulation of Adderall, which has lost patent protection. The big news is that Vyvanse will likely be a... Pharma Marketing Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1022191 Tue, 13 Nov 2007 11:34:00 +0100 1022191 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=863696&cid=t_156302_117_f&fid=34612&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thedoctorweighsin.com%2Fjournal%2F2007%2F9%2F10%2Fis-it-a-good-idea-to-get-our-drugs-from-canadian-online-phar.html by Pat Salber, MDThere is an interesting Q&A in the July 2007 issue of Wired Magazine. It addresses the ethics (and practical issues) related to buying medications from online Canadian pharmacies.The answer to the question if it is “a good idea to buy drugs from Canada,” Wired Magazine says you are “technically violating US law.” But, they go on to explain you are unlikely to be prosecuted as “The Man is tacitly cool with your ordering prescriptions drugs from north of the border.”  (Remember, this is Wired Magazine that is answering the question.)Wired goes on to say that you may actually have an ethical obligation to get cheap drugs from Canada “if those meds are staving off serious health problems and you really can’t manage the c... The Doctor Weighs In blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=863696 Tue, 11 Sep 2007 23:21:39 +0100 863696 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=675115&cid=t_156302_111_f&fid=34712&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdigitaldoorway.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F06%2Fof-course-i-take-my-meds.html "My asthma has been acting up. I feel terrible." We sit at her kitchen table as she wheezes and coughs."Which medicines have you been taking?" I ask, as I move the bottles and containers around the table, examining the original prescription dates and refills remaining on the various labels."Oh, I've been taking this one, this one, that one, and definitely this one," she replies, lifting up various bottles and shaking them in the air. They each have just a few pills left. "You see?" she says. "There's not much left in any of them.""So," I continue, "you've been taking this one every day, without fail?" I hold up a bottle of Singulair, a pill to be taken every night to prevent asthma attacks."Oh yes," she says."Well, I just don't know," I reply. "This label says that you filled this bottle o... Digital Doorway blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=675115 Tue, 12 Jun 2007 01:40:00 +0100 675115 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=559379&cid=t_156302_117_f&fid=34612&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thedoctorweighsin.com%2Fjournal%2F2007%2F4%2F22%2Fforget-to-take-your-medications-maybe-you-need-a-cybertooth.html Thanks to Skip McGinty for alerting me to this development: “Researchers Developing Automatic Oral Drug Dispenser” According to a report by Reuters, the European Union is funding a project to develop a "cybertooth," a Getting my cybertooth!cybernetic oral device that attaches to a tooth and automatically administers the appropriate dosage of medication as programmed by the patient's physician. Supposedly the device is designed to help chronically ill people, including those with Alzheimer’s disease, who have physical and/or mental reasons why they miss their medication doses. I, for one, find even with my faculties more or less intact, that it is tough to remember to take those pills, particularly if you have to take them more than once a day. I am always f... The Doctor Weighs In blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=559379 Sun, 22 Apr 2007 23:33:05 +0100 559379