This study aims to know the adherence to the medication treatment of adolescents
with cystic fibrosis in a specialized outpatient clinic, who receive medicament from
the Outpatient Pharmacy. It is a qualitative study developed in the outpatient clinic of
a public pediatric reference hospital located in Fortaleza, the capital city of the State
of Ceará. The gathering of information happened in the period between August and
October of 2013, with ten adolescents diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, being monitored
in the outpatient clinic, who were informed regarding the purpose of the study, its
secrecy and privacy, as well as in relation to the free and clarified consent term. A
patient is considered an adolescent if aged between ten and nineteen years old,
according to the criteria from the Ministry of Health. Currently, there are sixty-five
patients with cystic fibrosis being monitored in the cystic fibrosis outpatient clinic of
such pediatric hospital, and twenty-five out of those are adolescents. When gathering
the information, a form on the socio-demographic and pharmacotherapeutic aspects,
and a semi-structured interview guideline were used to collect data. The phase to
organize the reports was conducted through hermeneutical reductions, adapted to
the assumptions of Martins and Bicudo (2003), and the quantitative data were
organized in charts. Based on the data collected through the form, it has been found
out that six of the adolescents were male, with interviewees having a mean age of
13.8 years. Regarding their schooling level, six of them have not finished elementary
school, and four of them have not finished secondary school. The medication
treatment varies between 5 to 16 years of age. The total number of prescribed
medicament, in the month before the interview, represents an average of three
medications per patient, with a maximum of 05 remedies for each patient. In
accordance with the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical classification, medications
used by the patients are the digestive tract, anti-infective, and respiratory system
agents. The interviews were recorded with the consent from the tutors and
adolescents, by respecting the ethical aspects and the reports transcribed for
analysis. Through the reductive hermeneutic process, 130 units of meaning, eight
thematic categories, thus, reaching two essential ideas: the everyday use of
medications, and the patient before the use of remedies towards the treatment of
cystic fibrosis. The literature theoretical framework for the understanding and
interpretation of reports was used. It has been learned that the adolescent with cystic
fibrosis is not just a user of the Unique Health System receiving medications,
according to medical prescription, but a human being with one’s own expectations
and choices. It has been noticed that the role of the professional pharmacist is not
restricted only to offer medications, but to guide them concerning the rational use of
those, by adapting the use of the medicament to the reality of each patient through
health education. And, thereby, contribute to the adherence to the medication
treatment. Thus, the research refers to the need to take a careful look at the
adherence to the medication treatment for adolescents, and that the guidelines from
the health professionals have to respect the adolescent’s experiences.
Keywords: Cystic Fibrosis, Adherence, Adolescence.
