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November 2, 2011<\/p>\n
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Contact: Kerry O\u2019Neill, (410) 902-5035,\u00a0koneill@mghus.com<\/a><\/p>\n Baltimore, MD\u2014While most Americans recognize the importance of taking prescribed medication as directed, people who skip or forget doses are less likely to understand the health consequences of medication non-adherence, according to a new survey released this morning by the National Consumers League (NCL) as part of its national\u00a0Script Your Future\u00a0<\/em>campaign. At today\u2019s Baltimore launch of the multi-year national\u00a0Script Your Future\u00a0<\/em>campaign, Surgeon General Regina Benjamin encouraged patients with chronic conditions to speak with their health care professionals about their medication.<\/p>\n Poor medication adherence is a growing public health concern, and addressing the problem is especially critical as the number of Americans affected by at least one chronic condition requiring medication therapy is expected to grow from 133 to 157 million by 2020.\u00a0 Nearly three out of four Americans report that they do not always take their medication as directed, a problem that causes more than one-third of medicine-related hospitalizations, nearly 125,000 deaths in the United States each year, and adds $290 billion in avoidable costs to the health care system annually.<\/p>\n \u201cOur national challenge is to prevent poor health outcomes and to become a healthy and fit nation.\u00a0 One way is for the health care community and patients to come together to address medication non-adherence, which is a major public health problem,\u201d said Dr. Benjamin.\u00a0 \u201cDoctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health care professionals can help prevent many serious health complications by initiating conversations with their patients about the importance of taking medication as directed.\u00a0 This is especially important for people with chronic health conditions such as diabetes, asthma and high blood pressure, who may have a number of medicines to take each day.\u201d<\/p>\n Script Your Future<\/em>\u00a0brings together Baltimore area stakeholders in health care, business and government to offer practical tools for patients to help them better adhere to their medication, and to help health care professionals \u00a0better communicate with patients.\u00a0 Baltimore is one of six regional target markets in which the campaign will pilot interventions, outreach activities, research and advertising. \u00a0The local coalition includes more than a dozen Baltimore-based health care stakeholders including University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, the Maryland Pharmacists Association, and Pfizer.\u00a0 Today\u2019s event is also an official stop on the AARP\/Walgreens Wellness Tour, which provides mobile health tests to communities across the country.<\/p>\n The consumer survey results released today show that nationally and in Baltimore, those patients who do not always take their medication as directed are less likely to have received a full explanation of the consequences of their condition, and are less convinced of the importance of adherence. Communication between patients and their health care professionals is one key factor. More than three quarters (79 percent) of patients in Baltimore say they are very willing to raise questions or concerns about prescribed medicines with their health care professional, but only 55 percent say their doctor routinely asks about problems taking medication. \u00a0Among less adherent patients, communication with health care professionals is even less frequent.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are many reasons why people don\u2019t take their medicine as directed, from concerns about side effects to the out-of-pocket costs of prescriptions, but the more a patient understands the impact medication has on their health, the more likely they are to keep up with their medication. \u00a0Script Your Future is working in Baltimore and communities across the country to encourage more conversations about the health consequences of non-adherence and to provide patients and their health care professionals with a range of online tools and resources to help improve adherence among patients with chronic conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes and asthma,\u201d said Rebecca Burkholder, Vice President of Health Policy for the NCL.<\/p>\n The survey, conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, also found that patients view automatic refills, reduced co-pays and pill boxes as useful tools for improving adherence.\u00a0 In particular, three quarters of Baltimore patients find a list of questions for their healthcare professional to be a helpful tool.<\/p>\n \u201cAs we launch the campaign locally, the research reinforces the need to make medication adherence a priority in Baltimore, where 14 percent of residents are living with diabetes and 1 in 3 with high blood pressure,\u201d said Cherokee Layson-Wolf, PharmD., CGP, Associate Professor, University of Maryland, School of Pharmacy. \u201cOur local efforts are aimed at raising awareness and making tools for adherence more accessible to consumers.\u201d<\/p>\n Script Your Future<\/em>\u00a0tools include free text message reminders, sample questions for patients to ask health care practitioners, medication lists, condition management sheets, and fact sheets on common chronic conditions.\u00a0 All of these materials can be found on the campaign website,\u00a0www.ScriptYourFuture.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n ###<\/p>\n