Description

Morisky et al used a 4-item questionnaire to evaluate patient compliance with a drug regimen. The questionnaire is brief and can be integrated into most clinical encounters. It is particularly useful in chronic conditions treated by medication like hypertension. The authors are from UCLA, University of Texas at Houston and Johns Hopkins Hospital.


 

The instrument consists of 4 questions (after Table 1, page 69).

(1) forget to take medicine

(2) careless about taking medicines

(3) stop taking medicine if feeling better

(4) stop taking medicine if feeling worse

 

Responses are yes or no, which are scored 1 or 0 points respectively.

 

adherence score =

= SUM(points for all 4 questions)

 

Interpretation:

• minimum score: 0

• maximum score: 4

• The lower the score, the greater the compliance.

• Any positive response can be used as a basis for patient education, with reinforcement of need to comply with the drug regimen.

Score

Compliance

0

high

1 or 2

medium

3 or 4

low

after Table 2, page 70

 

Performance:

• The alpha coefficient is 0.61.

 


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