Dataset Information

A Survey of Patients' Perceptions of Pill Appearance and Responses to Changes in Appearance for Four Chronic Disease Medications.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Generic versions of a drug can vary in appearance, which can impact adherence.

Objective

To assess the preferences, perceptions, and responses of patients who experienced a change in the appearance of a generic medication.

Design

Cross-sectional survey of patients from a large commercial health plan.

Participants

Adults receiving generic versions of lisinopril, fluoxetine, lamotrigine, or simvastatin who experienced a change in the color or shape of their pills between March 2014 and November 2015.

Main measures

Likert-scale responses to questions concerning perceptions of generic drug safety and effectiveness, reliance on and preferences for pill appearance, and responses to pill appearance changes. Multivariable logistic regression-modeled predictors of seeking advice and adjusting use following a pill appearance change.

Key results

Of 814 respondents (response rate?=?41%), 72% relied on pill appearance to ensure they took the correct medication. A similar percentage wanted their pills to remain the same color (72%), shape (71%), and size (75%) upon refill, but 58% would not have paid a $1 premium on a $5 co-pay to ensure such consistency. Most respondents (86%) wanted their pharmacists to notify them about pill appearance changes, but only 37% recalled such notification; 21% thought they received the wrong medication, and 8% adjusted medication use. Younger respondents (18-33 vs. 50-57 years) were more likely to seek advice (odds ratio [OR]?=?1.91; 95% confidence interval [CI],1.02-3.59), and respondents with lower household income (?$100,000) were more likely to adjust medication use (OR?=?3.40; 95% CI,1.09-10.67).

Conclusions

Requiring uniform pill appearance may help increase adherence but presents challenges. Standardized pharmacy notification and education policies may be a more feasible short-term solution.

SUBMITTER: Sarpatwari A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6420535 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

A Survey of Patients' Perceptions of Pill Appearance and Responses to Changes in Appearance for Four Chronic Disease Medications.

Sarpatwari Ameet A Gagne Joshua J JJ Lu Zhigang Z Campbell Eric G EG Carman Wendy J WJ Enger Cheryl L CL Dutcher Sarah K SK Jiang Wenlei W Kesselheim Aaron S AS

Journal of general internal medicine 20190110 3

<h4>Background</h4>Generic versions of a drug can vary in appearance, which can impact adherence.<h4>Objective</h4>To assess the preferences, perceptions, and responses of patients who experienced a change in the appearance of a generic medication.<h4>Design</h4>Cross-sectional survey of patients from a large commercial health plan.<h4>Participants</h4>Adults receiving generic versions of lisinopril, fluoxetine, lamotrigine, or simvastatin who experienced a change in the color or shape of their ...[more]

PMID: 30632102

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Project description:ObjectiveThe number of patients with chronic diseases and subsequent visits to various healthcare professionals has been rising over the past decades, exposing patients to potential risks of receiving conflicting medication information. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of conflicting information on medications perceived by chronic patients in Switzerland and to understand its impact on patients' medication self-management and navigation in the healthcare system.ParticipantsThis cross-sectional study included adult patients taking at least one prescribed medication for at least 6 months, who had visited at least two physicians in the past 3 months.Main outcome measuresData on patients' perceptions of conflicting information were collected in person through a 17-item questionnaire available on paper and electronically with four domains: (1) whether the patient had perceived any conflicting information, (2) categories of conflicting information, (3) impact and (4) sources involved in the conflicting information.ResultsOf the 405 included patients, 47% perceived conflicting information related to one or more medication topics including indication, schedule, dosage, risk, severity or duration of side effects. Patients who perceived conflicting information were prescribed more drugs than those perceiving no conflicting information (p<0.01). Consequently, 65% of the participants modified their navigation of the healthcare system and 34% reported medication non-adherence. General practitioners (82%), specialist physicians (74%) and pharmacists (49%) were the healthcare professionals most often involved in conflicting information. Experience with the medication, its package insert and significant others were more frequently involved in conflicting information than internet or social media.ConclusionNearly half the patients in our study perceived conflicting information in the outpatient healthcare system, which can decrease medication effectiveness and pose safety issues. This issue is widely overlooked and unaddressed. Consistency of information among healthcare providers in partnership with patients should be reinforced through guidelines and new models of interprofessional care.

Dataset Information

A Survey of Patients' Perceptions of Pill Appearance and Responses to Changes in Appearance for Four Chronic Disease Medications.

Background

Objective

Design

Participants

Main measures

Key results

Conclusions

Publications

A Survey of Patients' Perceptions of Pill Appearance and Responses to Changes in Appearance for Four Chronic Disease Medications.

Similar Datasets

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