Adherence therapy following acute exacerbation of schizophrenia: A randomised controlled trial in Thailand

Abstract

AT improves psychopathology in Asian patients with schizophrenia following an acute exacerbation of illness.

Experiences of antipsychotic use in patients with early psychosis: a two-year follow-up study

“…Rates of adherence to antipsychotics during the first-episode psychosis (FEP) vary across studies, but overall findings indicate that approximately 40–60% of patients fully adhere [ 10 – 13 ]. Adherence is commonly considered “good”, or patients are described as “adherent”, if they use at least 70–80% of their prescribed medication [ 14 , 15 ].…”

A randomized controlled clinical trial of a nurse-led structured psychosocial intervention program for people with first-onset mental illness in psychiatric outpatient clinics

“…In addition, the PIP participants also showed a significant greater reduction of the average duration of psychiatric hospitalisations over the 12-month follow-up. However, the types and average dosage of medication taken in terms of haloperidol-equivalent mean values (Virani et al, 2012) did not differ between the two groups over the 12-month follow-up (p 40.10).…”

“…Motivational interviewing was also used to enhance treatment adherence and this might also have improved patients' perception of the need for treatment by helping them understand that taking medication as prescribed may be necessary in order for them to achieve their life goals. Previous studies that use similar therapeutic approaches targeted at medication adherence have also reported an increased recognition of the need for treatment and associated improvements in patients' symptoms (Gray et al, 2010;Schulz et al 2013;von Bormann et al 2014).…”

Commentary on: Hegedüs A. and Kozel B. (2014). Does adherence therapy improve medication adherence among patients with schizophrenia? A systematic review. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, doi: 10.1111/inm.12089

“…Many of us are easy to track down and would have been more than happy to facilitate an introduction. The missing trial was published on the 1 April 2014 (von Bormann et al 2014), although this post-dated the March 2013 cut-off date of Hegedüs and Kozel's (2014) published search.…”