Adherence to prophylactic medications is crucial if HIV-infected patients are to avoid preventable opportunistic infections. As well, it is critical if patients are to benefit from the protease inhibitors and other new antiretroviral medications. Currently very little is known about medication adherence among HIV-infected patients. However, in a recent study, patients report missing 30-40% of their medication doses. Our patients show considerable lack of understanding of their medication regimen and the importance of their prophylactic medications. The literature supports that education can enhance adherence rates, and use of an information-intensive interviewing style can increase clinicians' identification of adherence problems. Our clinical trial employs an information-intensive interview to increase the clinic staffs awareness of adherence problems among intervention patients and to provide education for patients who lack understanding of their medications. To date, there are no reported studies to determine that interventions effectively increase adherence in HIV-infected patients. We will address this gap in knowledge through our randomized, controlled intervention trial to improve adherence among our HIV-infected patients.
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