Abstract

Medicines adherence is a significant problem with up to 50% of medicines not being taken as intended by the prescriber. Of these nearly half are not taken intentionally, and this decision has been shown to relate to beliefs about the need for, and concerns of, prescribed medicines. In cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), therapists and patients work together to uncover and re-evaluate beliefs and behaviours; it has been shown to improve adherence. Pharmacists have been identified as key professionals to help address non-adherence; however, there is no research investigating pharmacist use of CBT strategies. This service evaluation set out to discover whether pharmacy staff can use CBT strategies; what the impact on patient experience was and whether medicine information needs were met. Pharmacy staff on a mental health hospital conducted medicine information consultations using a CBT framework, evaluating it using a patient survey. Fifty survey forms showed 98% (49/50) of respondents had their questions answered in a way they could understand and 98% (49/50) felt they were treated with respect and dignity. We found that pharmacy staff can incorporate cognitive behavioural strategies into the medicines consultation process, meet patients’ medicine information needs and achieve high patient satisfaction levels. In light of the findings of this paper, we recommend that pharmacy staff be aware of the psychological aspects of medicine-taking behaviour, seek to improve the consultations they have with patients and explore what CBT could offer in this regard. Research recommendations include more rigorous investigation into the effect on adherence and clinical outcomes that this approach may have.