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Medication adherence – the proceedings of the a:care congress 2021 have been published in the journal Atherosclerosis

The proceedings of the a:care congress that took place on October 2021 have just been published in the journal of the European Atherosclerosis Society: Atherosclerosis1.

This publication is available here

Poor adherence to medicine is a key societal issue worldwide, with an estimated up to 31% of patients who never fill in their prescriptions, and up to 50% of patients do not take their treatment as directed2. Causes for non-adherence are often little known. Despite this, adherence has wide-ranging implications – on people, societies, and economies alike, and it is considered as an important public health issue.

According to the WHO, increasing the effectiveness of medical adherence interventions may have a far greater impact on the health of the population than any improvement in specific medical treatments3.  Behavioral science has the potential to tap into human behavior and psychology to make a positive, durable impact on medication adherence and drive better patient outcomes. Developed by Abbott, a:care is a non-commercial connected health ecosystem that helps transform the relationship between the physician and the patient. It is a unique approach on adherence driven by behavioral science and digital resources, which aims to educate healthcare professionals and empower patients in taking charge of their health.

Patient adherence should be acknowledged as a critical health care issue and a multidisciplinary approach to education and management in this area should be established1.

As part of our collaborative and innovative efforts to solve this public health challenge, Abbott organized the first global Congress on medication adherence and behavioral science, inviting world-recognized experts across different therapeutic areas to come together and share their knowledge, experience, and patient insights about adherence. Cross-disciplinary conversations are invaluable opportunities to build bridges between people and disciplines, as well as catalyze the adoption of novel approaches to help solve one of the world’s most pressing health issues and enable people to not just live longer, but better. 

This first a:care virtual congress on medication adherence gathered 10,000 healthcare professionals from all medical specialties across 107 countries. The recordings of the sessions are available here

References

  1. Tokgözoğlu L, Weinman J. Proceedings from the a:care congress: Adherence to medication: Time to recognise the elephant in the room, Atherosclerosis, May 2022, article in press. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2022.04.022
  2. Khan, R. and K. Socha-Dietrich (2018), “Investing in medication adherence improves health outcomes and health system efficiency: Adherence to medicines for diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidaemia”, OECD Health Working Papers, No. 105, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/8178962c-en. – https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/social-issues-migration-health/investing-in-medication-adherence-improves-health-outcomes-and-health-system-efficiency_8178962c-en
  3. World Health Organization (WHO), 2003. Adherence to long-term therapies – Evidence For Action. [online] Available at: <https://www.who.int/chp/knowledge/publications/adherence_full_report.pdf> [Accessed September 2021].