Effect of Occupational Therapy in Promoting Medication Adherence

The purpose of this study is to determine whether the addition of an occupational therapy intervention to counseling by a clinical pharmacist (current usual care) compared to counseling by a clinical pharmacist only, will affect three-month medication adherence rates among community-dwelling adults with uncontrolled hypertension and/or diabetes.

To meet this purpose, the following objectives will be addressed:

• to determine if the addition of the delivery of an occupational therapy intervention (specifically the Integrative Self-Management Intervention) to usual care improves three-month medication adherence rates, as measured by the Adherence to Refills and Medication Scale (ARMS-7), pill count, blood pressure and/or hemoglobin A1c.
• to determine whether the administration of the occupational therapy intervention in addition to usual care influences an individual's readiness for change as measured by the stages of change measure; and
• to explore whether participant demographics (e.g., gender, age, race/ethnicity, assist at home, co-morbidities, and number of medications) impact three-month medication adherence rates.

Inclusion criteria

• Jordan Valley Community Health Center clients will be considered eligible for inclusion in the study if they are 18 years or older, have a confirmed diagnosis of hypertension, receive a score of less than or equal to 21 on the Adherence to Refills and Medication Scale (ARMS-7) and they provide written informed consent.

Exclusion criteria

• Participants will be excluded if they indicate via self-report that they are unable to read or understand spoken English without an interpreter or translator or if they have a medical power of attorney and are unable to provide their own informed consent.