“My patients are better than yours”: optimistic bias about patients’ medication adherence by European health care professionals

Figures & data

Table 1 Demographic statistics for the sample

Sample size	Total N=3,196; Austria =698; Belgium =289; England =318; France =133; G ermany =303; H ungary =322; the Netherlands =91; Poland =571; Portugal =53; Switzerland = 418; doctors =855; pharmacists = 1,294; nurses =1,047
Age, mean (standard deviation)	44.77 (10.96)
Sex	Male =1,102; female =2,069
Years since qualifying (frequency distribution)	<1 year n=86	1–5 years n=354	6–10 years n=374	11–15 years n=439	Over 15 years n=1,935
Type of health care setting (frequency distribution)	Community hospital n=385	Family medication/general practice n=820	Specialist community service n=104	Care/nursing home n=155	Community pharmacy/dispensary n=1,175	Community nursing team n=154	Polyclinic n=45	Other n=308
Type of health care organization (frequency distribution)	Privately funded n=1,127	State funded n=1,050	Insurance/sick fund funded n=531	Mixed funded n=44	Other funding n=302
Length of time spent talking to patients about their use of medications (frequency distribution)	No time at all n=34	<1 minute n=158	1–5 minutes n=1,715	6–10 minutes n=801	11–15 minutes n=226	>15 minutes n=199
Preregistration training in medication adherence management and support (frequency distribution)	Yes n=296	No n=1,780
Postregistration training in medication adherence management and support (frequency distribution)	Yes n=684	No n=1,392
Any training in medication adherence management and support (frequency distribution)	Yes n=803	No n=1,268
Use of practitioner guidelines to assist with management of patient adherence to medication (frequency distribution)	Yes n=468	No n=1,586

Table 2 Perceptions of the extent of medication nonadherence (percentages)

Group	Target	0%–15%	16%–35%	36%–65%	66%–85%	86%–100%
What percentage of all patients/patients that you see with a chronic condition, do you think do not initiate prescribed medication (that is, patients who do not take any of their prescribed medication)?
Overall	Own patients	67.80 (N=1,468)	24.03 (N=691)	6.22 (N=179)	1.39 (N=40)	0.56 (N=16)
	Average	49.03 (N=1,468)	37.71 (N=1,129)	11.46 (N=343)	1.54 (N=46)	0.27 (N=8)
Doctors	Own patients	68.23 (N=537)	25.29 (N=199)	4.45 (N=35)	1.40 (N=11)	0.64 (N=5)
	Average	45.17 (N=365)	42.45 (N=343)	11.51 (N=93)	0.87 (N=7)	0 (N=0)
Pharmacists	Own patients	71.49 (N=810)	22.15 (N=251)	5.21 (N=59)	0.79 (N=9)	0.35 (N=4)
	Average	57.80 (N=693)	33.53 (N=402)	7.59 (N=91)	0.92 (N=11)	0.17 (N=2)
Nurses	Own patients	63.08 (N=603)	25.21 (N=241)	8.89 (N=85)	2.09 (N=20)	0.73 (N=7)
	Average	41.54 (N=410)	38.91 (N=384)	16.11 (N=159)	2.84 (N=28)	0.61 (N=6)
What percentage of all patients/patients that you see with a chronic condition, and who initiate their prescribed medication do take their medication as prescribed?
Overall	Own patients	21.93 (N=630)	13.23 (N=380)	22.42 (N=644)	29.41 (N=845)	13.02 (N=374)
	Average	2.64 (N=79)	16.01 (N=479)	38.40 (N=1,149)	36.10 (N=1,080)	6.85 (N=205)
Doctors	Own patients	32.74 (N=258)	14.09 (N=111)	18.27 (N=144)	23.98 (N=189)	10.91 (N=86)
	Average	2.73 (N=22)	17.76 (N=143)	39.01 (N=314)	33.79 (N=272)	6.71 (N=54)
Pharmacists	Own patients	21.98 (N=249)	12.62 (N=143)	24.10 (N=273)	29.74 (N=337)	11.56 (N=131)
	Average	1.67 (N=20)	14.33 (N=172)	41.67 (N=500)	36.08 (N=433)	6.25 (N=75)
Nurses	Own patients	12.92 (N=123)	13.24 (N=126)	23.84 (N=227)	33.51 (N=319)	16.49 (N=157)
	Average	3.75 (N=37)	16.62 (N=164)	33.94 (N=335)	37.99 (N=375)	7.70 (N=76)
What percentage of all patients/patients that you see with a chronic condition, and who initiate their prescribed medication do persist with their medication for 1 year?
Overall	Own patients	2.68 (N=77)	12.28 (N=353)	32.25 (N=927)	38.59 (N=1,109)	14.20 (N=408)
	Average	3.25 (N=97)	16.31 (N=487)	38.46 (N=1,148)	34.47 (N=1,029)	7.50 (N=224)
Doctors	Own patients	1.91 (N=15)	13.78 (N=108)	32.78 (N=257)	39.41 (N=309)	12.12 (N=95)
	Average	3.49 (N=28)	20.45 (N=164)	38.78 (N=311)	32.17 (N=258)	5.11 (N=41)
Pharmacists	Own patients	1.68 (N=19)	10.41 (N=118)	35.98 (N=408)	40.56 (N=460)	11.38 (N=129)
	Average	1.92 (N=23)	13.17 (N=158)	42.08 (N=505)	35.75 (N=429)	7.08 (N=85)
Nurses	Own patients	4.50 (N=43)	13.28 (N=127)	27.41 (N=262)	35.56 (N=340)	19.25 (N=184)
	Average	4.68 (N=46)	16.79 (N=165)	33.77 (N=332)	34.79 (N=342)	9.97 (N=98)

Note: Response scale: 1=0%–15%; 2=16%–35%; 3=36%–65%; 4=66%–85%; 5=86%–100%.