Pharmacist instruction and patient compliance with medication therapy

This study was to determine the effect of a pharmacists' instruction on the ability of one hundred people to take their medication as their physician prescribed it. These people were patrons of a retail pharmacy, and patients of private physicians. Pour groups of twenty five were selected, and each was given a different type of instruction about their medication. The first group was given no instruction. The second group was given oral instruction. The third group was given oral and written instruction. The fourth group was given oral instruction, and had their prescription labeled with a time of day dose schedule. The rate of error was found by determining the ratio of errors to the number of doses the patient should have taken on the fifth day after a prescription was filled. The number of errors was determined by visiting the patient at his home, and counting the doses remaining in the prescription container. There was a decrease in error from 26% in group one to 16% in group two, and 17% in group three and 10„9% in group four. The results of this study indicate a need for instruction to the patient about his medications, and the effect of four types of instruction be a pharmacist.