Medication Adherence during COVID-19 Pandemic
As an intern for a retail chain, medication adherence is probably the most heavily stressed aspect in pharmacy today. This is made apparent with the abundance of daily outreach calls to patients reminding them to pick up their medication. Regardless of the corporations motivations for these calls (repeat customers, increased profit, larger script volume) it all comes down to patient adherence. When patients are taking their medications as prescribed they are going to have better health outcomes and increased treatment success. Medication adherence is an issue in the United States regularly which leads to the question of how adherence will change during the COVID-19 pandemic. One possibility is that patients take an increased vigilance and responsibility in their health because they want to be as healthy as possible to fight off a pending virus. Another possibility is that patients simply don’t want to risk going outside to pick up their medications and end up visiting the doctor less due to fears of contracting COVID-19 which leads to less refilling of medications and decreased adherence. Without guidance from healthcare professionals, the second possibility seems more likely. My experience has highlighted two major potential barriers to adherence during this pandemic: inability or unwillingness to get out to the pharmacy to pick up their medication and increased medication cost due to loss of insurance or job.
As a pharmacy intern and future pharmacist I believe it is our duty to help customers receive their medications during times like these. Retail chains are now offering free delivery on all medications during this COVID-19 pandemic. This is a great tool to help patients receive their medications on time and limit their exposure to the virus. We can go out of our way to offer and set up delivery for all elderly patients who are at an increased risk. As previously mentioned, we can offer delivery during all patient outreach calls and emphasize the importance of medication adherence to increase treatment outcomes. We can also recommend patients come through drive-thru at all pharmacies that are capable. Taking these extra steps to ensure our patients are comfortable and able to receive their medication can make a huge difference in their health and wellbeing during this pandemic.
Another issue that may turn out to be a long term problem is medication cost due to patients losing their insurance due to job loss. At this time the economy is in turmoil and there have been a vast number of Americans filing for unemployment. As patients lose their jobs, access to prescription insurance will go away as well. Medication cost is a huge barrier to adherence as it is. As a pharmacy intern I always take it upon myself to look up discount cards and manufacturer coupons for patients in need. There are retail chains that have softwares built into their systems that can do this, but it is often overlooked. During this pandemic it is important to make sure patients in need are receiving their medications at the cheapest possible cost to them. We can also take advantage of patients who are currently insured and try to get them extra medication supplies when allowed through their insurance to make sure they have a medication supply for an extended period of time.
Conclusion
COVID-19 has had a great impact on retail pharmacy which may have lasting effects on the industry. It is our job to help patients through these difficult and confusing times by making it as simple as possible for them to receive their medications and pay a reasonable price. As healthcare professionals we have the knowledge and tools to make a difference in our patients lives.
Thank you for reading,
Dennys Tapia III
Sources:
https://www.pharmacytimes.com/news/concerns-about-medication-adherence-grow-amid-covid-19-pandemic
