Validation of two methods to evaluate adherence to oral anti-diabetic medication

Abstract

de araujo mfm, de freitas rwjf, marinho nbp, alencar ampg, damasceno mmc & zanetti ml (2011) Journal of Nursing and Healthcare of Chronic Illness3, 275–282 Validation of two methods to evaluate adherence to oral anti-diabetic medication Aim. To validate two indirect methods to evaluate adherence to oral anti-diabetic therapy. Design. Convenience sample composed of 437 individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The Batalla test and the Measurement of Treatment Adherence were used to collect data in the participants’ households. Pill count was considered the gold standard for assessing adherence to oral anti-diabetics. Data were collected in 2009. Findings. In relation to the gold standard, the Measurement of Treatment Adherence was more associated with non-adherence to oral anti-diabetics cases than the Batalla test (p = 0·000). The Measurement of Treatment Adherence displayed stronger correlation with pill count (p 0·561). Conclusion. The Measurement of Treatment Adherence was the best method to identify non-adherence to oral anti-diabetics of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Relevance to clinical practice. Identifying the best method to evaluate patients’ adherence to oral anti-diabetic medication can facilitate the nurses’ decision-making process in clinical practice.