Perceptions of pharmaceutical services among elderly people on polymedication

ABSTRACT Objectives: Describe the importance of guidelines provided during pharmaceutical consultation about compliance with medication therapy based on interviews with polymedicated elderly patients. Methods: A qualitative methodological study carried out during consultations with 40 elderly patients of both genders at the Health Care Center for Elderly Patients and Caregivers. The study used the technique of content analysis, applying a questionnaire with two open questions. Results: Two categories and eight subcategories emerged after the transcription of interviews and exhaustive reading of the data. The category “Pharmaceutical consultation as an education instrument for the self-care of polymedicated elderly patients” presented the highest frequency. The subcategory with the highest frequency was “Concern of elderly patients about self-care”. Final Considerations: In the case of polymedicated elderly patients, pharmaceutical consultation is an important education instrument which, through the provision of pharmaceutical guidelines, allows the minimization of concerns about pharmacotherapy, contributing to compliance and self-care.