Non-communicable diseases, medication adherence and social support among elderly medical clinic attendees of the Teaching Hospital, Karapitiya, Sri Lanka

Introduction: Sri Lankans 60 years and above are among the highest in South Asia and the country's population is fast ageing. This trend would increase the prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCD). Objectives: To determine the prevalence of NCD, medication adherence and social support among elders at the medical clinics in Teaching Hospital, Karapitiya, Sri Lanka Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among medical clinic attendees aged 60 years and above. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data on demography, NCD, medication adherence and perceived social support. Data were collected from every eighth elderly patient attending the medical clinic on clinic days for a month. Binary logistic regression was performed to determine the significant association between study variables (p<0.05). Results: Data of 459 elders were included for the analysis. Hypertension (76%), diabetes mellitus (44%), ischaemic heart disease (38%), dyslipidaemia (32%), and bronchial asthma (21%) were the top five NCDs observed. High levels of medication adherence and social support were seen only in 24% and 20%, respectively. A significant association for medication adherence was found with social support (p<0.05; Spearman rho 0.09). Conclusions & Recommendations: Hypertension was the most common NCD among the elders. A significant association for medication adherence was found with social support. Hence, medication adherence among elders could be improved by enhancing perceived social support.