Understanding reasons and factors for participation and non-participation to a medication adherence program for patients with diabetic kidney disease in Switzerland: a mixed methods study

The impact of interprofessional collaboration between pharmacists and community health workers on medication adherence: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

There is increasing evidence to support the effectiveness of interventions involving community health workers (CHWs) in improving patient health outcomes, which reinforces their growing integration in healthcare teams. However, little is known about the interprofessional collaboration between pharmacists and CHWs. This systematic review aimed to explore the impact of interprofessional interventions involving pharmacists and CHWs on patient medication adherence.

METHODS

The English language scientific literature published in Embase, MEDLINE, Web of Science, CINAHL, Scopus, plus the grey literature were searched in October 2024. Using the software Covidence, two authors screened article titles and abstracts and assessed full-text articles for eligibility. Studies were included if (i) the intervention was delivered by pharmacists and CHWs and (ii) reported on medication adherence outcomes. Data were extracted using a customized template using Excel and synthetized narratively. The Effective Public Health Practice Project quality assessment tool was used to assess the studies' methodological quality.

RESULTS

Eight studies met the inclusion criteria, including a total of 1577 participants. Seven studies were conducted in the United States, and six were published since 2020. The interventions consisted of medication therapy management, medication reconciliation, and repeated education sessions. The CHW shared clinical and non-clinical patient information and ensured a culturally safe environment while the pharmacist delivered the clinical intervention. In five studies, medication adherence was evaluated solely through patient self-reported measures. One study used an objective measure (i.e., pharmacy refill records) to evaluate medication adherence. Only two studies assessed medication adherence using both self-reported and objective measures (i.e., pill count and proportion of days covered). A significant improvement in medication adherence was observed in three of the eight studies. Half of the studies were of weak quality and half of moderate quality.

CONCLUSIONS

There was a small number of studies identified which focused on the impact of interprofessional collaboration between pharmacists and CHWs on medication adherence. The impact of the interprofessional interventions on medication adherence was limited. Further studies of higher quality are needed to better evaluate the impact of such collaboration on patient health outcomes.

REGISTRATION

PROSPERO, ID CRD42024526969.

The differential impact of a 6-versus 12-month pharmacist-led interprofessional medication adherence program on medication adherence in patients with diabetic kidney disease: the randomized PANDIA-IRIS study

Background: For every 100 patients with diabetes, 40 will develop diabetic kidney disease (DKD) over time. This diabetes complication may be partly due to poor adherence to their prescribed medications. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the differential impact of a 6- versus 12-month pharmacist-led interprofessional medication adherence program (IMAP) on the components of adherence (i.e., implementation and discontinuation) in patients with DKD, during and after the intervention. Methods: All included patients benefited from the IMAP, which consists in face-to-face regular motivational interviews between the patient and the pharmacist based on the adherence feedback from electronic monitors (EMs), in which the prescribed treatments were delivered. Adherence reports were available to prescribers during the intervention period. Patients were randomized 1:1 into two parallel arms: a 12-month IMAP intervention in group A versus a 6-month intervention in group B. Adherence was monitored continuously for 24 months post-inclusion during the consecutive intervention and follow-up phases. In the follow-up phase post-intervention, EM data were blinded. Blood pressure was measured by the pharmacist at each visit. The repeated measures of daily patient medication intake outcomes (1/0) to antidiabetics, antihypertensive drugs, and statins were modeled longitudinally using the generalized estimated equation in both groups and in both the intervention and the follow-up phases. Results: EM data of 72 patients were analyzed (34 in group A and 38 in group B). Patient implementation to antidiabetics and antihypertensive drugs increased during the IMAP intervention phase and decreased progressively during the follow-up period. At 12 months, implementation to antidiabetics was statistically higher in group A versus group B (93.8% versus 86.8%; Δ 7.0%, 95% CI: 5.7%; 8.3%); implementation to antihypertensive drugs was also higher in group A versus B (97.9% versus 92.1%; Δ 5.8%, 95% CI: 4.8%; 6.7%). At 24 months, implementation to antidiabetics and antihypertensive drugs remained higher in group A versus B (for antidiabetics: 88.6% versus 85.6%; Δ 3.0%, 95% CI: 1.7%; 4.4% and for antihypertensive drugs: 94.4% versus 85.9%; Δ 8.5%, 95% CI: 6.6%; 10.7%). No difference in pharmacy-based blood pressure was observed between groups. Implementation to statins was comparable at each time point between groups. Three patients discontinued at least one treatment; they were all in group B. In total, 46% (16/35) of patients in the 12-month intervention versus 37% (14/38) of patients in the 6-month intervention left the study during the intervention phase, mainly due to personal reasons. Conclusion: The IMAP improves adherence to chronic medications in patients with DKD. The longer the patients benefit from the intervention, the more the implementation increases over time, and the more the effect lasts after the end of the intervention. These data suggest that a 12-month rather than a 6-month program should be provided as a standard of care to support medication adherence in this population. The impact on clinical outcomes needs to be demonstrated. Clinical Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT04190251_PANDIA IRIS.

Impact of type 2 diabetes on life expectancy and role of kidney disease among inpatients with heart failure in Switzerland: an ambispective cohort study

BACKGROUND

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is expected to worsen the prognosis of inpatients with heart failure (HF) but the evidence from observational studies is inconsistent. We aimed to compare mortality outcomes and life expectancy among inpatients with HF with or without T2D and explored whether chronic kidney disease (CKD) influenced these associations.

METHODS

We collected hospital and civil registry records of consecutive inpatients from a tertiary hospital in Switzerland with a diagnosis of HF from the year 2015 to 2019. We evaluated the association of T2D with mortality risk using Cox regression and adjusted for confounders.

RESULTS

Our final cohort consisted of 10,532 patients with HF of whom 27% had T2D. The median age (interquartile range [IQR]) was 75 [68 to 82] and 78 [68 to 86] for the diabetes and non-diabetes groups, respectively. Over a median follow-up [IQR] of 4.5 years [3.3 to 5.6], 5,347 (51%) of patients died. T2D patients had higher risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR] 1.21, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.14 to 1.29). Compared to control (i.e. no T2D nor CKD), average life expectancy (95% CI) among T2D patients, CKD, or both was shorter by 5.4 months (95% CI 1.1 to 9.7), 9.0 months (95% CI 8.4 to 9.6), or 14.8 months (95% CI 12.4 to 17.2), respectively. No difference by sex or ejection fraction category was observed.

CONCLUSIONS

T2D is associated with a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality and shorter life expectancy compared to those without among middle-aged and elderly inpatients with HF; presence of CKD may further increase these risks.

Relationship Between Family Caregiver Burden and Medication Adherence in Patients with Mechanical Valve Replacement: A Structural Equation Model

BACKGROUND

Oral anticoagulant is a necessary long-term treatment after mechanical valve replacement (MVR), and medication adherence has a great impact on patients with MVR. Although family caregiver burden is negatively correlated with medication adherence, little is known about the underlying mechanism.

PURPOSE

To test whether family caregiver burden influences medication adherence through post-traumatic growth or medication literacy in patients with MVR.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 206 patients after MVR were included in this cross-sectional study from July 2021 to December 2021. Data regarding medication adherence, family caregiver burden, post-traumatic growth, and medication literacy were collected by questionnaires. Data were analyzed through SPSS, and pathway analysis was conducted by using AMOS, based on the bootstrapping method.

RESULTS

Post-traumatic growth was positively associated with medication adherence (r = 0.284, P < 0.05). Post-traumatic growth independently mediated the association of family caregiver burden on medication adherence [β = 0.32, 95% confidence intervals: (-0.016, -0.008)]. The mediated effect value for post-traumatic growth was 0.07, accounting for 24.14% of the total effect. The model's fit indices were adequate.

CONCLUSION

The mediating effect of post-traumatic growth between family caregiver burden and medication adherence existed in patients with MVR. Interventions considering post-traumatic growth may be useful to increase medication adherence and improve patient rehabilitation.