A practical use of theory to study adherence.
In another study, adherence to medication was improved when tailored educational intervention led by a nurse was included [175].
The purpose of this paper was to present one approach for operationalizing the Trajectory Theory of Chronic Illness to study adherence in patients with heart failure.
The trajectory model offers unique opportunities to study adherence, specifically because measurable patient attributes are clearer when evaluated in the context of the work required to adhere over time.
Theoretic models have been used to study adherence; however, these models are predominantly designed for health behavior interventions (ie, smoking cessation, diet modification, or exercise) and focus less on conceptualizing the work involved in carrying out complex self-care regimens.
METHODS AND RESULTS Observational analysis of the AVAIL study (Adherence Evaluation After Ischemic Stroke-Longitudinal) included 2083 ischemic stroke patients enrolled from 82 US hospitals participating in Get With The Guidelines-Stroke and AVAIL.
Subjects were recruited from an ongoing cohort study (Adherence Monitoring Uganda (AMU)) in Kampala, Uganda.
In a previous study, adherence for subjects required to wear a pedometer for 12 consecutive weeks was 72% [30].
In our study, adherence without intervention declined as the interval between screening appointments lengthened, and it is quite possible that the level of adherence after 10 years would be very low.
In this study, adherence differences between strains were not influenced by any particular stx profile, but rather, were clade-specific, as increased adherence was observed in clade 8 relative to clade 2 even among strains with only stx2.
A one-year period may seem short to study adherence patterns.
