AstraZeneca partners with pharmacists to help patients

UK-headquartered Anglo-Swedish drug major AstraZeneca has launched on its domestic market the Making the Most of your Medicines program, a pioneering adherence initiative funded by the company, which aims to assist community pharmacists help patient make the most from certain of the drugmakers products.

Patient adherence to a prescribed medicine regimen is a major problem in the UK, with one in six people failing to take their drugs correctly or fully adhering to the recommendations made by their prescriber. Inadequate adherence can result in a significant deterioration of patient outcomes, particularly among those with serious conditions. For instance, it is estimated that poor adherence to inhaled corticosteroid therapy, which may occur in 10%-40% of patients, may contribute to 18%-48% of asthma deaths.

Wendy Clyne, assistant director of the Medicines Partnership Program, NPC Plus, says that "non -adherence to prescribed medicines can have a negative impact not only on patient outcomes but also contributes to medicines waste. The Public Accounts Committee estimated that L100.0 million ($198.6 million) is lost on wasted and unused drugs each year."