Effects of self medication programme on knowledge of drugs and compliance with treatment in elderly patients

To determine whether a programme of self medication for inpatients improves compliance with treatment and knowledge of their drugs after discharge from hospital.

Patients were prospectively recruited from four wards: two with a self medication programme and two acting as controls. Ten days after discharge the patients were visited at home. They were questioned about their drugs, and a tablet count was undertaken.

The pharmacy department and four medical wards with an interest in elderly patients at a district general hospital, and the patients' homes.

88 patients discharged to their own homes who were regularly taking one or more drugs.

A hospital self medication programme in which patients are educated about their medicines and given increasing responsibility for taking them in hospital.

Compliance with and knowledge of the purpose of their medicines 10 days after discharge from hospital.

The mean compliance score in patients taking part in the self medication programme was 95% compared with 83% in the control group (difference 12%, 95% confidence interval 4% to 21%; P < 0.02). Of the patients in the self medication group, 90% (38/42) knew the purpose of their drugs compared with 46% (17/37) in the control group (difference 44%, 26% to 63%; P < 0.001).

A self medication programme is an effective aid for improving compliance with and knowledge of patients' drugs after discharge.