Correlation of Physical, Psychological, and Functional Factors with Independent Medication Adherence in Korean Older Adults with Chronic Illness: Using the 2017 National Survey of Older Koreans

Purpose: To identify the differences in sight, hearing, cognitive function, depression, and activities of daily living and the relationships between the research variables according to the independent medication adherence of Korean older adults with chronic illness.

Methods: Data were taken from the 2017 National Survey of Older Koreans. The sample comprised 8333 household-dwelling participants aged 65 and older, who had one or more chronic diseases.

Results: Korean older adults were, on average, diagnosed with 3.21 chronic illnesses and taking 4.55 doctor-prescribed medications. There were significant differences in age, education level, living arrangement, perceived subjective health states, number of diagnosed chronic diseases, number of prescription medications being taken, level of discomfort with daily living due to decline in sight and hearing, cognitive function, depression, and levels of activities of daily living according to independent medication adherence. For Korean older adults with independent medication adherence, cognitive function had significant correlations with perceived subjective health states, depression, and daily living activities. For those with partially-dependent or dependent medication adherence, lower cognitive function was associated with greater discomfort due to hearing, and depression had significant correlations with perceived subjective health states, number of prescription medications being taken, and discomfort due to decline in sight and hearing, but significant correlation with level of cognitive function.

Conclusion: Nursing intervention should be planned to enhance the medication adherence of Korean older adults. Specifically, cognitive function, depression, and activities of daily living must be considered along with the patient's health.