Nurses' perception of promoting adherence to medications suffering from mental illness.

Abstract

The intention of the study was to explore the 'perceptions' of the nurses working in a mental health setting, in promoting adherence to medications in people suffering from mental illness. The objectives to this study were to establish an understanding of the subject and what may enhance or hinder medication uptake. Forty mental health nurses, working in an inpatient setting participated in the study by completing a structured self-administered 31-item questionnaire, specifically structured and piloted for this research. A link person distributed these questionnaires within the different clinical areas thus increasing anonymity and diminishing selection bias. The results indicated that despite the challenges encountered by their working environment, the participants identified the most effective methods to encourage adherence and implement successful interventions. These included psycho- education, need for behavioural change, strong nurse-patient relationship, identification of side effects, allowing the patient to help in developing his treatment plan by collaborating with the clinician and other health care providers, as the most important componements for improving medicine taking. Study findings also highlight the need for more educational opportunities for nurses and need of more human resources to spend more quality time with the patients and strengthen therapeutic relationships. Several recommendations were made based on the conclusion of the study. These included the need for further research, need to spend more time with the patient, need for psychoeducation, behavioral intervention and motivational interviewing and need to keep nurses updated by attending seminars and professional development courses.