It is fairly common for people prescribed medications for long-term health problems to skip doses, modify doses or otherwise change medications in ways their doctor never intended.

In the field of pharmacy, this is called non-adherence.

Matt Witry, PhD, an assistant professor in the Health Services Research division, has received a new grant from the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy and American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy to study medication non-adherence.

Community pharmacists play a vital role in encouraging patients to use their medications as directed.

Witry will use the $3,000 NABP/AACP District Five Study Grant to gather community pharmacists’ first-hand accounts of why some of their patients are not adhering to their medications. He wants to see if current research on the topic jibes with the actual experiences of practicing pharmacists. He will also ask the pharmacists about new services that could be used to improve patients’ adherence to medications.

Witry will present his findings at the NABP District 5 meeting in 2016.