title: Patient response to insurer-led intervention for medication adherence - a pilot study based on claims data in Korea.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was designed to investigate patient responses to a medication counseling intervention program piloted by the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS), the national health insurer in Korea, to improve medication management in patients with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or diabetes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Interventions were conducted from July to September 2013 through direct mailing followed by two telephone-initiated counseling sessions for the medication discontinuation group (< 80% medication possession ratio (MPR) and ≥ 2 months of discontinuation) and the medication over-possession group (≥ 150% MPR). The telephone intervention was applied through two models: model 1 (counseling by NHIS staff only) and model 2 (counseling by NHIS staff with contract-based working pharmacists in community pharmacies). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors affecting favorable responses of patients to the telephone-initiated intervention. Patient responses to the telephone-initiated intervention were evaluated by a counselor.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all, 891 patients were counseledvia telephone. Patient responses to the telephone-initiated intervention were favorablein 57.6%, neutral in 17.4% and not favorable in 24.9% overall. Counseling by NHIS staff together with pharmacists (model 2) produced more favorable responses from patients than counseling by NHIS staff alone (model 1) (OR 2.73, 95% CI 1.97 - 3.77).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings of favorable responses to interventions support a personalized approach by the NHIS to improve patient behavior for medication adherence.
authors.forename: Hyun Soon
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Sohn
authors.forename: Sunmee
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jang
authors.forename: Ju-Yeun
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Euna
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Han
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003376:Counseling; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007343:Insurance Carriers; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D055118:Medication Adherence; D008875:Middle Aged; D009313:National Health Programs; D010865:Pilot Projects; D056910:Republic of Korea