Effect of Nurse-Led Educational Interventions on Medication Adherence Among Cancer Patients Receiving Oral Chemotherapy

Abstract

Background: Pill taking is paramount in the treatment of cancer diseases using oral chemotherapy. Non-adherence is still a common problem, although a lack of patient education and counselling often causes it. Nurse-delivered educational interventions must be taken further to improve compliance, especially in developing countries.
Aim: The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a nurse-led educational intervention in improving medication adherence.
Methods: An exploratory quasi-experimental study was conducted at the Sinor Hospital oncology clinic, Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with 60 samples of only the adult oncology patients. Two groups were formed, out of which 30 were in the nurse-led educational interventional arm and 30 were in the standard care arm. This comprised individual counselling, written directions, bi-weekly check-ups, and three-month group lectures. The Morisky Medication Adherence Scale, a nine-item knowledge assessment questionnaire, and the EORTC QLQ-C30 were used in data collection. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 27. Chi Square and Paired T-Test were used for inferential statistics.
Results: The assessment results after the intervention revealed that the control group had enhanced scores in adherence to medications (p < 0.001) and knowledge regarding chemotherapy schedules and side effects. Concerning the quality of life, the intervention group participants had higher results than the control group (p = 0.012). From the analysis, we found that baseline knowledge level and intervention involvement significantly dictated the amount of adherence.
Conclusion: Health education conducted by an RN improves adherence, knowledge, and health-related quality of life in patients with cancer undergoing oral chemotherapy. The usefulness of such practices is evident; thus, incorporating them into usual oncology treatment is advisable.