Introduction: Adherence to antirejection medication is important for lung transplanted patients with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). These patients may be particularly vulnerable to severe illness from COVID-19 due to immunosuppressive medications required to prevent organ rejection. Proper management and, most importantly, patient adherence to antirejection medication can become a complex challange.
Aim: To investigate in a clinical setting whether Motivational Interviewing (MI), in the form of phone calls, text messages, telemedicine consultations and home visits, improve adherence to antirejection medication among adult lung transplanted patients with CF during the COVID–19 pandemic.
Methods: Fifteen adult lung transplanted with CF were contacted by the nurses every two weeks for MI via phone calls, text messaging, telemedicine consultations and/or home visits. The following assessments were used:1) Identifying Medication Adherence Barriers, a self-report questionnaire consisting of 28 statements referring to common barriers to medication taking with a category response option for each statement; 2) Basel Assessment of Adherence Scale for Immunosuppressives; and 3) The Transplant Adherence Questionnaire.
Results: Adherence to antirejection medication was improved and maintained from April 2020 to December 2021. However, adherence decreased with the introduction of vaccines and removal of public health restrictions.
Conclusion: We have shown that adherence increased using MI through phone calls, text messaging, telemedicine consultations or home visits during the COVID–19 pandemic. Besides increased regular contact, MI might be a tool for nurses to improve adherence.