Tan Yi Wen, Suppiah Sumithra Devi, Chan Alexandre, Koh Gerald Choon-Huat, Tang Wern-Ee, Tay Sarah Siew Cheng, Malhotra Rahul
Centre for Ageing Research and Education, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.
School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California Irvine, USA.
Explor Res Clin Soc Pharm. 2021 Oct 27;4:100087. doi: 10.1016/j.rcsop.2021.100087. eCollection 2021 Dec.
Prescription medication labels (PMLs) are an important source of written medication information for patients. However, real-world PMLs do not entirely conform with available labelling best practices and guidelines. Given this disconnect, older adults remain particularly at risk of misinterpreting their PMLs. Past studies have commonly assessed hypothetical PMLs, warranting studies that explore the lived experiences of older adults with real-world PMLs. Furthermore, the perspective of family caregivers of older adults is yet to be studied.
This qualitative study documented the challenges faced by older adults and their family caregivers in using real-world PMLs, their strategies to cope with these challenges, and their suggestions to improve existing PMLs.
We conducted two focus group discussions ( = 17) and 30 in-depth interviews with older adults ( = 20; including those who can read in English and those with limited English proficiency) and caregivers ( = 10) in Singapore. The data were systematically assigned to codes that were continuously refined to accommodate emergent themes.
Challenges, coping strategies and suggested improvements were related to the comprehensibility, availability, readability and consistency of medication information on PMLs.
Real-world PMLs continue to pose challenges for older adults and their caregivers, necessitating them to seek unique and personal coping strategies. The identified PML improvements, desired by older adults and their caregivers, urge healthcare systems to implement improved PMLs. Future research should explore system-level logistical, financial, and administrative barriers (or opportunities) that hinder (or facilitate) this implementation.
处方药标签（PMLs）是患者书面用药信息的重要来源。然而，实际的处方药标签并不完全符合现有的标签最佳实践和指南。鉴于这种脱节情况，老年人仍然特别容易误解他们的处方药标签。过去的研究通常评估假设的处方药标签，因此有必要进行研究来探索老年人在实际使用处方药标签时的真实经历。此外，老年人家庭照顾者的观点尚未得到研究。
这项定性研究记录了老年人及其家庭照顾者在使用实际的处方药标签时所面临的挑战、应对这些挑战的策略以及他们对改进现有处方药标签的建议。
我们在新加坡对老年人（n = 20；包括英语阅读能力者和英语水平有限者）和照顾者（n = 10）进行了两次焦点小组讨论（n = 17）和30次深入访谈。数据被系统地分配到不断细化的代码中，以适应新出现的主题。
挑战、应对策略和建议的改进与处方药标签上用药信息的可理解性、可用性、可读性和一致性有关。
实际的处方药标签继续给老年人及其照顾者带来挑战，使他们不得不寻求独特的个人应对策略。老年人及其照顾者所期望的处方药标签改进措施，促使医疗保健系统实施改进后的处方药标签。未来的研究应探索阻碍（或促进）这一实施的系统层面的后勤、财务和行政障碍（或机会）。
