pLOG

2025-06-11

Effectiveness Analysis of Patientsforce’s Patient Assistance Program in Improving Patient Adherence to Medical Prescriptions

Using the Patient Support Program for a certain biologic therapy provided by Cizhao Strategy Consultants as an example, systematic healthcare educator services were employed to help patients understand the importance of treatment, accompany them throughout their treatment journey, and build a stable doctor-patient relationship. In the first year of program implementation (FY23), the overall adherence rate averaged 89%, increasing to 90% in the second year (FY24), showing a steady upward trend.

The chart below shows the monthly adherence rates for the two fiscal years:

The chart shows that, aside from the early months of FY23—where adherence data was slightly elevated due to incomplete enrollment during the project transition period—adherence rates in FY24 were generally higher than those in the same months of the previous year. This indicates that our company’s patient support strategy has demonstrated significant effectiveness.

Factors Influencing Patient Adherence to Medical Prescriptions

Despite the overall stable performance, certain months still showed noticeable fluctuations. For example, in June and July of both fiscal years, the number of follow-up visits decreased due to a higher incidence of physicians attending academic conferences abroad and some hospitals scheduling temporary closures. Additionally, February 2024 (FY23) and January 2025 (FY24) coincided with the Lunar New Year holidays, which affected patients' appointment schedules and resulted in lower adherence rates.

Taking March 2025 as an example, the analysis of reasons for patient non-adherence to treatment is as follows:

  • 73% were unable to return for follow-up due to personal reasons (such as work, family obligations, or unexpected events).
  • 11% were unable to return on time due to prior authorization issues (such as application denial, ongoing review, or reduced approved injection quantity).
  • 12% were self-paying patients who did not return for follow-up; this group could not be included in the healthcare educator service tracking.
  • 4% discontinued treatment due to adverse events following medication use or upon physician’s recommendation to pause treatment.

Healthcare Educator Intervention Model and Actual Outcomes

From the beginning of enrollment, healthcare educators in this project actively established contact with patients, providing education, appointment reminders, and medication support through regular phone calls and face-to-face visits. For patients unable to attend scheduled visits due to unforeseen circumstances, educators proactively coordinated new appointment times to prevent treatment interruptions that could affect efficacy or lead to relapse. For patients whose monthly visits were reduced due to limits on insurance-approved injection quantities, educators continuously monitored their condition. If disease relapse occurred due to extended treatment intervals, educators actively assisted in discussing the insurance appeal process with physicians to restore the approved injection quantity, ensuring uninterrupted treatment for patients.

Through the continuous involvement and services of healthcare educators in the Patient Support Program, a significant improvement in patient adherence to medical prescriptions has been observed, effectively reducing the risk of treatment interruption. Moving forward, data analysis and quality improvement mechanisms will be continuously applied to optimize healthcare educator service processes, further enhancing patient care quality and treatment outcomes.