ABSTRACT
The influence of patient knowledge disease and treatments on adherence in the elderly is conflicting. Patient adherence may be adversely affected, for example, by elderly patients with diabetes attempting to manipulate an insulin syringe, or by the difficulty with fractional dosage when a elderly patient with arthritic hands is unable to split tablets. Salzmann suggests that methods to improve adherence with medical treatments should begin by examining communication between the elderly patient and their physician since good communication should help the patient understand their illness, the importance of their medications, potential drug interactions and the limitations of a particular treatment. An adherence package has been defined as a pre-packaged unit that provides the patient with one treatment cycle of their medication in a ready-to-use package. While non-adherence is a problem common to all age-groups, it is particularly important in elderly people because they are more likely than younger people to suffer adverse consequences from non-adherence.
