Managing Medication Adherence in Elderly Hypertension Patients through Pharmacists Home Visits

The prevalence of uncontrolled hypertension in African Americans is a major national health problem. Hypertension affects older African Americans in alarming numbers. This project will address one of the factors contributing to uncontrolled hypertension, that of medication non-adherence. This one-group pre-and post-test study was implemented to reduce health disparities in blood pressure control among African American Medicare beneficiaries age 65 years and older by improving medication adherence. A pharmaceutical educational intervention was implemented with community-based older adults to improve blood pressure control, medication adherence, and hypertension knowledge among this population. The objectives of the program were to: 1) achieve a blood pressure control rate of 50% among participants, 2) achieve a medication adherence rate of 90%, 3) obtain a 95% self-report of using the blood pressure monitor at home, and 4) improve hypertension awareness and knowledge among participants by 10%. The six month intervention included a baseline in-home pharmacist visit, biweekly telephone follow-ups, and educational mailings followed by a final pharmacist home visit. Participants received education about self-monitoring of blood pressure, medication management and lifestyle modifications to improve blood pressure control. The study was implemented through a partnership between Texas Southern University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and a Community Based Health Organization (Houston Housing Authority - HHA). Preliminary findings will be discussed.