title: Barriers to and facilitators of HIV-positive patients' adherence to antiretroviral treatment regimens.
abstract: HIV-positive patients must strictly adhere to antiretroviral regimens for the medications to work properly. Little, however, is known about the obstacles that patients face in adhering to the regimens or what, if anything, helps patients to adhere. The goals of the project were to describe, from HIV-positive patients' own perspectives, the barriers they face in adhering to antiretroviral regimens and the strategies they use to maximize their adherence. Five main barriers (forgetfulness, social/physical environment, complexity of the regimens, medication side effects, and inadequate patient knowledge) to adherence and six main facilitators (mechanical devices, "making a commitment," "routinizing," health beliefs, social support, and professional support) emerged from the data. Patients may overcome some of these barriers by receiving better health education about the need for adherence, professional and lay support for their efforts, and mechanical devices such as alarm clocks and medi-sets. Other barriers, however, such as the complexity of the medications, highlight the need for simplified antiretroviral regimens.
authors.affiliation: University of California, Los Angeles, USA. kjrobert@ucla.edu
authors.forename: K J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Roberts
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D003625:Data Collection; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D012307:Risk Factors; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents