Study will look at low-income seniors and how they pay their bills
An Alberta study aims to determine whether some seniors who are unable to afford prescription medication is resulting in more heart attacks, strokes and other chronic ailments.
The University of Calgary's threeyear study will look at whether lowincome seniors are struggling to pay insurance co-payments and whether free preventative medications and/or personalized education would reduce chronic illnesses.
The goal is to have 4,500 to 5,000 participants in the study. Currently about 2,100 people are enrolled including 120 from Medicine Hat, Brooks, and Bow Island, said Dr. David Campbell, Alberta Innovates Clinician Fellow, University of Calgary. It is not too late to participate. To be eligible for the study you must be 65 or older, an Alberta resident, and have an annual household income of less than $50,000. You must either have had a heart attack, a stroke, chronic kidney disease or heart failure. You must have any two of the following: Diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoke more than half a pack of cigarettes a day.
No travel is required for interviews or assessments. Once enrolled you are asked to complete a survey and there will be follow-up surveys annually for a total of about four throughout the study, said Campbell.
“The feedback has been very positive so far,” said Campbell.
About 40 per cent of people with chronic conditions take their prescribed medications 100 per cent of the time. There are some conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol where symptoms may not be bothersome and it can be difficult for patients to understand the importance of taking preventive medications when they are not bothered by symptoms.
A lack of money is another reason people might not get their prescriptions filled. Although insurance covers a significant portion of the cost of medication, the amount of the co-payment can still be a significant burden for some seniors.
In this study researchers are assessing the outcomes of people randomly assigned to different intervention groups within the study. Those who continue their present medication coverage and usual education through their physician's office, those who receive a personalized education plan, those who receive free preventive medications, or those who receive both the personalized education plan and free preventive medications.
Some study participants will continue to pay for their medications and receive knowledge through their family physician's office, and some will receive free preventative medications and a personalized education plan. If selected for the free medication it is all handled through Bluecross, said Campbell.
“They don’t have to get any new insurance or cards,” said Campbell. “They will be getting the same medications they would be getting through their doctor. We are trying to be as much in the background as possible.”
An assessment for eligibility, data collection and patient education is handled by the ACCESS research team via telephone or email.
Anyone interested in being part of the study should call 1-844-944-8927 to determine if they qualify. Additional information is available online at:
www.accesstrial.ca