the effect of supportive text message on the adherence to medication in depression: an experimental study

Background & aim: lack of adherence to prescribed medication is a main concern in medicine especially in chronic diseases. the aim of present study was to determine the effect of supportive text message on the adherence to treatment of depression. methods & materials: this quasi-experimental study was conducted on sixty eligible patients with diagnosis of depression who referred to a psychiatry clinic in shahrekord. the patients were allocated to supportive text message and control groups. the patients in both groups were treated with the same antidepressants; however, the patients in supportive text message group additionally received daily text messages for six weeks. the adherence to medication was assessed by a researcher-made questionnaire and the severity of depression was assessed by beck depression inventory. results: immediately after intervention, average score of depression showed a significant improvement in both groups (p<0.001). moreover, the average score of depression and medication adherence, in two groups (supportive short message and control group) had no significant differences (16.76 ± 4.70 and 63.3% vs 19.83 ± 7.39 and 53.3%) (p= 0.06 and 0.31). conclusion: daily supportive text message in this study could not improve antidepressant adherence and depressive symptoms in patients with major depression.