Beyond the Prescription: Association Between Illness Perception and Medication Adherence in Chronic Obstructive...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains a pressing global health challenge, characterized by progressive respiratory impairment and substantial impacts on quality of life.

This study aimed to examine the level of medication adherence among patients with COPD in Jordan and explore the relationship between medication adherence and illness perception (IP) among patients with COPD in Jordan.

A cross-sectional, correlational design was used to recruit a convenience sample utilizing the Medication Adherence Report Scale Questionnaire (MARS-5), and the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire (Brief IPQ) was utilized. The study was conducted in the outpatient pulmonary clinics of four major referral hospitals in Jordan.

The study involved 169 COPD patients, with a majority being married and male. Most had bachelor's degrees, making between 300 and 500 Jordanian Dinar. 39.1% had 1-3 family members, with 66 reporting family members. The study used a medication adherence reporting scale to evaluate patients' medication adherence. The mean score was 23.17, with 91.1% of COPD patients adhering to their treatment regimen, while 8.9% were non-adherent. The majority were unlikely to forget, alter dosage, discontinue, skip doses, or use less than prescribed. The study found that timeline acute/chronic, consequences, personal control, treatment control, coherence, and timeline cyclical positively correlated with the MARS-5 mean score, indicating high scores correlate with high medication adherence, while emotional representation had no significant correlation.

The study found that COPD patients in Jordan demonstrated high medication adherence and generally positive IPs, particularly regarding treatment effectiveness, illness coherence, and personal control. These findings underscore the importance of patient-centered education and supportive interventions to enhance adherence and self-management.