Patients' Compliance With Health Regimens

EVERY practicing physician soon learns that the proper diagnosis and recommended treatment of disease constitutes only half his task. The other half, of equal importance, concerns the extent to which the patient complies with his recommendations. A variety of studies have shown noncompliance rates that vary between 30% and 70% over a wide range of conditions and recommended actions, but apparently average about 50%; ie, 50% of your patients will not follow prescribed regimens precisely as ordered or for the full period of time of the prescription. This may come as no surprise when one considers such areas as obesity, cigarette smoking, and exercise, but it may surprise some physicians that these figures hold even for the taking of relatively simple medications that do not involve marked changes in life-style. Reasons for Noncompliance Within the past few years, accumulating evidence has thrown considerable light on the reasons for noncompliance with