Scholars@Duke publication: Randomized controlled trial of an education-based intervention to improve medication adherence: Design considerations in the medication adherence in glaucoma to improve care study.

Randomized controlled trial of an education-based intervention to improve medication adherence: Design considerations in the medication adherence in glaucoma to improve care study.

Publication , Journal Article

Rosdahl, JA; Hein, AM; Bosworth, HB; Woolson, S; Olsen, M; Kirshner, M; Hung, A; Muir, KW

Published in: Clin Trials

June 2021

BACKGROUND: Glaucoma treatment requires patients to follow daily, often times complex, eye drop regimens, but adherence is poor for many patients, putting them at risk for irreversible vision loss. A comprehensive approach is needed to address the challenges in the self-management of glaucoma. The purpose of this study is to improve glaucoma medication adherence in Veterans with medically treated glaucoma using an education-based intervention. METHODS/DESIGN: This study is a single-site randomized controlled trial enrolling 200 Veterans and their companions, if companions are involved in their care. It has two arms: an intervention group and a control group. Participants in the intervention group receive an educational session with a non-physician interventionist and are provided with an AdhereTech smart bottle with the reminder functions activated. The control group is designed as an attention control such that they have a session on general eye health and are provided with a smart bottle but without the reminder functions activated. The primary outcome is the proportion of prescribed doses taken on schedule over 6 months following randomization according to the smart bottle. Secondary outcomes include intensification of glaucoma treatment, cost of intervention delivery, and cost-effectiveness of the intervention over 12 months. DISCUSSION: The education-based intervention that we are testing is comprehensive in scope, to encompass a variety of barriers to adherence that glaucoma patients encounter, but personalized to address issues facing individual patients. Particular attention was given to feasibility in the real-world setting, as the high throughput of patients and lack of reimbursement for educational encounters in ophthalmology would limit implementation of a resource-intensive intervention.