Spending More to Save More: Interventions to Promote Adherence

Abstract

Editorials5 January 2010Spending More to Save More: Interventions to Promote AdherenceDavid R. Bangsberg, MD, MPH and Steven G. Deeks, MDDavid R. Bangsberg, MD, MPHFrom Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114; and University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94110.Search for more papers by this author and Steven G. Deeks, MDFrom Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114; and University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94110.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-152-1-201001050-00012 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Medicine often balances patient and population interests. Resource-rich areas, such as the United States, often focus on maximizing benefit for the individual patient, whereas resource-limited settings, such as sub-Saharan Africa, often focus on maximizing population benefit (1). In a data-driven analysis of adherence behavior, disease outcomes, and health care use in this issue, Nachega and colleagues (2) demonstrate that these pressures do not necessarily conflict. They provide compelling data indicating that increasing resources to enhancing HIV-infected patients' antiretroviral adherence is associated with substantial cost savings for the entire public health system.Among HIV-infected persons, antiretroviral treatment adherence strongly predicts viral ...