What pharmaceutical marketers call “non-adherence” remains one of the industry’s weakest links.
Only around half of medicines for long-term conditions are reportedly taken as prescribed in developed countries – and there is little evidence of any improvement in adherence rates over the past 50 years.
The reasons for non-adherence run the gamut from a patient believing the therapy is no longer effective to the high cost of drugs – and the US pharmaceutical industry forfeits an estimated $250 billion annually in potential revenue due to patients not taking their medications as instructed.
“Poor adherence to treatment plans is common among...