Improve Medication Adherence Among Stroke Survivors in Rural Kentucky

Hend Mansoor4 enrolled

Overview

To test the feasibility and promise of a combined intervention provided by community health worker (CHW) in collaboration with pharmacy technician and pharmacist to improve hypertension and long-term stroke outcomes by identifying and reducing barriers to medication adherence among ischemic stroke survivors. This collaborative intervention involves a self-management program including an educational session on practical strategies to improve hypertension control (i.e., appropriately taking medications, necessity of treatment, and consequences of not taking medicine, etc.), complemented by individually-tailored sessions to identify and address barriers to medication adherence.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Enrollment

Conditions

Stroke (CVA) or Transient Ischemic Attack

Interventions

Participants will receive a one-to one session with the pharmacy technician that involves two parts; the first part include education on ischemic stroke and risk factors such as practical strategies to improve hypertension control (i.e., appropriately taking medications, necessity of treatment, and consequences of not taking medicine, etc., making healthier dietary choices, exercising regularly, smoking cessation, alcohol intake, and managing blood sugar. The second part involves an interview to collect information on socio-demographics, clinical factors, co-morbidities, medications, and medication adherence barriers. During the second part of the session, the pharmacy technician will identify barriers to medication adherence for secondary prevention of stroke medications including antihypertensives, antithrombotic agents, and statins. The pharmacist will collaborate with the pharmacy technician to develop an action plan to address medication adherence barriers

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 30 YearsMax age: 90 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Adult patients with history of ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) in the past 2 years * residing in a rural county in Kentucky Exclusion Criteria: * significant aphasia * cognitive impairment * a terminal illness * other neurologic deficits that would impede from providing informed consent or meaningfully participate in the one-to-one sessions. * a prior aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage and or aneurysm, cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, vasculitis, blood clotting disorder due to genetic causes * if the patient does not take any secondary preventative medications

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Change in Medication Adherence Questionnaire

Medication adherence is measured using a 12-item questionnaire that determines how often medications are missed. Scores range from 12 to 48 with lower scores indicating better adherence

Time frame: Baseline and at 3 months