Development and Implementation of an Educational Program to Enhance Adherence to Glaucoma Treatment

Introduction. As the world population ages, glaucoma is becoming an increasingly significant cause of blindness. Statistics gathered by WHO in 2010, show that glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness, worldwide. A key component in the management of glaucoma, is the use of prescribed medications· but the effectiveness of medications depends on patient's adherence to treatment. However, there is evidence of poor adherence to prescribed medication in chronic diseases and a causative factor for that is the limited education and the low health literacy. This study aims to investigate the reasons of non-adherence to the medication plan among patients with glaucoma and secondly, according the findings, to develop and implement a comprehensive educational program. Methods and analysis. This is a mixed method study which include 3 stages: a descriptive study (stage 1), focus group discussion (stage 2) and a randomised control trial (stage 3). Sample: Patients with glaucoma, using at least one kind of drops, will be recruited from the two ophthalmology clinics in Cyprus. Selected measures include: Glaucoma Treatment Compliance Assessment Tool (GTCAT), European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q6) and the Glaucoma Medication Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (GMSEQ). The data will be analysed by SPSS program with descriptive and inferential statistics. Content analysis will be used for the data from the focus groups. Ethics and dissemination. Permission to conduct the study received from the Cyprus National Bioethics Committee (ΕΕΒΚ ΕΠ 2019.01.220) and the board of management of the two ophthalmology clinics. All participants will be informed fully on the purpose and methods of the study. Consent forms will be signed and at any time participants will have the right to withdraw. Confidentiality of the participants will be respected as also the protection of data. Dissemination strategy includes presentations in international and national scientific conferences and publications in scientific journals.