Compliance For Donations?

Would you be more compliance with your medications if you knew that every time you took a pill or refilled that a donation was made in your honor to a certain charity?  It’s an interesting hypothesis being put forth in this article – Leveraging Altruism To Improve Compliance… BUT I personally am fairly skeptical. 

Let’s just look at the barriers identified in one recent barrier survey we did at Silverlink Communications for patients who had not refilled their statin medications. 

What do you see?

1. Significant literacy issues.  People didn’t even know they were supposed to refill. 
2. People don’t understand the medication and remember what the physician told them.
3. Convenience…an easy to address opportunity.  These are key targets for a retail-to-mail or 90-day retail program.
4. Side effects…this is harder to address but some of it can be managed by setting expectations up front.

Are those going to be addressed because a donation is being made?  I don’t think so.