IMPROVING THE HEALTH BEHAVIOURS OF COPD PATIENTS: IS HEALTH LITERACY THE ANSWER?

Abstract

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality (Vogelmeier et al., 2017). Adherence to prescribed medications and adequate medication inhalation technique (MIT) is critical for optimal management of COPD, as is the proper use of the medication delivery device.O’Conor et al. (2019) found that lower health literacy (HL) was associated with both poor medication adherenceand MIT. HL, according to the Process-Knowledge Model, consists of both processing capacity and knowledge (Chin et al., 2017). COPD most commonly occurs in older adults (Cazzola, Donner, & Hanania, 2007). Older adults tend to have lower processing capacity (Chin et al., 2017). The purpose of this study was to determine if HL was associated with medication refill adherence (MRA)and/or MIT. Fifty-seven participants completed a questionnaire package that included demographic questions, measures of HL, and assessments of MRA and MIT. A subset of twenty patients participated in qualitative interviews. Results indicated that lower HL was associated with both lower MRA and poor MIT, and qualitative findings revealed the need for further information. Future research should focus on testing educational materials that have been designed and/or reformatted to meet the lower processing capacity of older adults.