The Relationship Between Medication Adherence and Coping Skills in Patients With Heart Failure

Introduction: Medication adherence is essential to improve outcomes emanated from the disease. The increase in the complexity of the medical regimens causes poor adherence in patients with heart failure; also, the progressive nature of Heart Failure (HF) and its complicated drug regimens are mostly stressful. This study has been conducted on the HF patients at the heart hospital of Kermanshah city with the objective of finding the association between medication adherence and coping skills. Methods: The present research is a descriptive-correlative study. Research cases include 400 HF patients at Imam Ali hospital of Kermanshah in 2015 who were selected using available sampling method. The self-reported epidemiologic characteristics form of HF patients, Morisky medication adherence Questionnaire (1986) and short form of Carver Questionnaire (COPE, 1997) were utilized for data gathering. SPSS 22 software and statistical test of Pearson correlation and descriptive statistical were used to analyze the data. Results: The result showed that the majority of the studied cases (%94) had poor medication adherence. Pearson correlation data analysis revealed direct and weak statistical correlation between medication adherence and coping Skills (religion P=0.036, acceptance P=0.019, use of emotional support P=0.02, use of instrumental support P=0.001, hummer P=0.025, positive reframing P˂0.001, self-distraction P=0.002).  Conclusion: Given the weakness of medication Adherence and relationship between medication adherence and coping Skills in HF patients, the application of educational and intervention programs appears to be substantial.