Conference abstract

Adherence to medications and functional abilities of patients with mental disorders in selected hospitals in Osun State

Pan African Medical Journal - Conference Proceedings. 2022:12(7).17 Feb 2022.
doi: 10.11604/pamj-cp.2022.12.7.1237
Archived on: 17 Feb 2022
Contact the corresponding author
Keywords: Functional abilities, medications, mental disorders, non-adherence
Oral presentation

Adherence to medications and functional abilities of patients with mental disorders in selected hospitals in Osun State

1Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria, 2Department of Nursing, Osun State University, Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria

&Corresponding author

Introduction: antipsychotics medication adherence plays a key role in patients with mental disorders, and regular treatment has been proven to ameliorate symptoms and reduce relapse rates. However, treatment non - adherence remains one of the greatest challenges in psychiatry. Non adherence to antipsychotic medication has a negative impact on the course of illness, resulting in increased risk of relapse, re-hospitalization and suicide, and increased costs of healthcare systems. Therefore, this research assessed the level of adherence to medications and the functioning of patients with mental disorders. This study also described the relationship between non-adherence to medication, the functional abilities and socio-demographic variables of patients with mental disorder.

Methods: this study was conducted in one secondary and two tertiary hospitals in South-western Nigeria. A quantitative, non – experimental descriptive research design was used for the study. A questionnaire was used for data collection, and the resulting data was analysed using descriptive statistics on SPSS. The study was conducted among 75 patients.

Results: the findings from this study revealed that participants had a high level of adherence to their medication and a high level of functional ability. The study also revealed that there was no significant relationship (p> .05) between medication adherence and functional abilities of the participants. However, there was a significant relationship (p< .05) between the employment status and functional abilities of participants.

Conclusion: this study has shown that psychiatric patients adhere to their medication but there is more to be done by Nurses to ensure that the level of compliance and adherence continue to increase. Therefore, Nurses must continue to health educate patients on the need for adherence to medication as a means of preventing relapse and keeping the body free of symptoms of mental disorders. On the other hand, since employment status being employed influences the functional ability of participants in this study, nurses need to educate patients that their illness should not prevent them from working or cause loss of job as long as adequate and appropriate treatment has been sought.