Perceptions of barriers and facilitators: self-management decisions by older adolescents and adults with CF.

BACKGROUND Adherence to CF treatments is poor, which can lead to negative health outcomes. The objective of our study was to qualitatively investigate the barriers and facilitators of self-management among older adolescents and adults with CF. METHODS Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted, audio-taped, transcribed verbatim and coded to identify common themes. RESULTS Twenty-five patients were interviewed. Four broad themes were identified: Barriers to Self-Management (e.g., treatment burden (identified by 64% of patients), accidental or purposeful forgetting (60%), no perceived benefit (56%)), Facilitators of Self-Management (e.g., CF clinic visits (76%), social support (68%), perceived benefit (68%)), Substitution of Alternative Approaches to Conventional Management (36%) and Planned Non-adherence (32%). CONCLUSIONS Older adolescents and adults with CF identified many barriers and facilitators of adherence that may be amenable to self-management counseling strategies, particularly the use of health feedback.