Summary Of The Article 'When The Patient Is Noncompliant'

After reading the New York Times article, When the Patient Is ‘Noncompliant’ by Dr. Danielle Ofri, I found it was quite relatable to the activity we were given in our experiential pharmacy class. Taking three different types of medication didn’t seem that much at first, but after having to do it for seven days myself, I might be considered “noncompliant”. As stated in the article, it is not just simply having to take the pills. In addition to taking medication, patients have an social and work life that can be time consuming. This can cause the patient to mindlessly forget to take the medication at the right time or skip a dose, and this was the case for me. Since I was too busy with school, work, and family, it caused me to lose track of having to take my medications. It can be hard for patients to balance everything on
By leaving it on the counter when I can easily see it also helped with reminding me to take it. This method definitely increased my adherence to the doses given. While these methods may seem typical to our technology savvy generation today, it may not be so apparent to the older population. Different methods can be introduced to the elderly, such as timer caps that also act as an alarm for the pill bottles. However, in addition to these methods, there is a need for patient motivation and willingness to commit to achieve the health outcome they want. The story Dr. Ofri stated at the end of the article about her grandmother is an example of how her personal belief that she didn’t need the whole dose may have caused her death, but this may have been something she wished for since she never wanted to be in a nurse home setting. Ultimately it is up to the patient, but this can all be reinforced with the help of healthcare professionals by informing the patient about the benefits, side effects, and risks of taking the