Taking prescription medications as directed can improve health and quality of life, especially for people with cardiovascular disease or diabetes. But patients don’t always follow directions, and it is becoming a public health issue. People often:
1st place winner Remind Me Again
- Do not fill prescriptions when they’re needed
- Stop using medications before they should
- Take less of the medication than directed
- Split pills
- Skip doses
The New England Journal of Medicine 
reports that not following the instructions on prescription medications can lead to new health problems. In fact, patients who do not follow their medication’s instructions have a 50-85% higher mortality rate than those who do.
Through the Managing Meds Video Challenge, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology invited the public to submit short videos sharing how technology can help people manage their prescription medications effectively and improve health and safety.
The winners all show different uses of health technology—from smartphones to the Web—to help them remember to take their medications. The top three entries and the popular choice award all received cash prizes.
Watch all the winning videos at Challenge.gov.
You can follow the sponsor of the contest on Twitter at @ONC_HealthIT or use #ManageMeds to join the conversation.
Comments