Improving Adherence

Improve Practitioner style 

LEY (1988) found out ways to improve practitioner style in order to increase adherence:

• Emphasize key information to patients
• Simplify information
• Use straight forward language without medical jargon so that patients do not confuse concepts or feel uneducated.
• Have patients repeat instructions or write them down.
• Use diagrams to represent the treatment/regime.

For more detailed information – Ley (1988)

Provide Information 

BURKE ET AL (1997) reviewed 46 studies of cardiovascular risk-reduction programmes, where a taxonomy was used to classify behaviour change.

4 techniques to provide information were highlighted:

1. Tailor the regime – ensure that the treatment is compatible with the patient’s lifestyle.
2. Provide prompts and reminders – these could serve as cues so patients are reminded of the treatment like receiving messages.
3. Arrange self-monitoring –  ask patients to keep a written record of what they do, this serves as a prompt and increases the chance of them sticking to the treatment.
4. Establish a behaviour contract –  these must be signed between patient and practitioner to achieve goals and get rewards.