Expanding the Framework of Assessing Adherence and Medication-Taking Behavior

ABSTRACT

This analysis critiques recently published concepts of medication adherence assessment and elucidates the importance of finding new measures of adherence. Improving concepts and methods of adherence assessment is key to improving adherence outcomes. It proposes a new framework that contains more inclusive concepts and more standardized terminology. These new concepts and terms not only describe adherence and its specific measures in more detail, but also describe all medication-taking behavior. It argues for the integration of and measurement of behavior associated with specific dose times, types, or schedules. Last, it describes promising research enabled by the new framework that, if implemented, might lead to improved adherence.

KEYWORDS :

• compliance
• health behavior
• medication adherence
• momentary assessment
• nomenclature
• pharmacotherapy outcomes
• terminology