Relationship between Adherence to Therapeutic Regimen and Clinical Outcomes among Patients Post Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Background: Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is a life-saving method for multiple conditions such as cancer, immune disorders, and hematologic diseases. Therapeutic regimen adherence in HSCT patients may be compromised by the complexity of their condition and could influence these patients’ clinical outcomes, furthermore, non-adherence rises the risk of mounting serious health outcomes like graft-versus-host disease, infection which all lead to readmissions. Aim of the study: The aim of this study is to identify the relationship between adherence to therapeutic regimen and clinical outcomes among patients post hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Design and Setting: The study design was descriptive correlational research design. The study was carried out in the outpatient clinic of the Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit, Al-Moassat University Hospital, Alexandria, Egypt. Subjects: It was comprised of 80 post HSCT patients. Tools: three tools were used for data collection; Tool I: Socio-demographic and clinical data of Post-HSCT patients, structured interview questionnaire, Tool II: Post hematopoietic stem cell transplantation patients’ adherence questionnaire. Tool III: Clinical outcomes assessment sheet. Results: three-fifths of the studied patients (60%) had moderate level of adherence, more than two-thirds of them (70%) had poor clinical outcomes, and there was a statistically significant correlation between patient’s level of adherence and their clinical outcomes (p= 0.004 ) . Conclusion: the highest percent of the studied patients were highly adhered to follow up visits and prescribed medication regimen, while they were poorly adhered to recommended diet, infection prevention precautions, and social activity precautions. Most of the studied patients had poor outcomes. Recommendation: Routine adherence and clinical outcomes monitoring should be integrated into standard clinical care of post-HSCT.