PENGARUH PENINGKATAN INFORMASI LISAN DAN ETIKET OBAT TERHADAP PEMAHAMAN DAN KETAATAN PASIEN PADA PENGOBATAN ANTIBIOTIKA DI PUSKESMAS (THE IMPACT OF IMPROVED INSTRUCTIONS AND LABELS -ON THE PATIENTS' COMPREHENSION AND THE

ABSTRACT Background: The patient's adherence to their medication course is a crucial part of rational drug use. Especially where the blood level has to be kept consistent, as in the case of antibiotics. Inappropriate use of antibiotics may result in increasing anti-mi¬crobial resistance. The patients' knowledge of the medication and the treatment plan is very important to their adherence. The dispenser plays the crucial role of verbal and written instructions about the prescriptions. This study examines how did the improvement in verbal instructions and improved labeling techniques affects the understanding of patients and their adherence to the antibiotics course. Method: This study was designed to be a quasi-experimental study with pre and posttests, using control groups. Eight primary health centers located in Yogyakarta city were divided into three intervention groups and one control group. The subjects were patients receiving antibiotics. Each of the three intervention groups was ran¬domly assigned into one of the three interventions, i.e. improved verbal instructions, improved labels, or both improved verbal instructions and labels. The outcome points were measured statistically. There was the patients' comprehension, determined by interviewing them using 15 points of questions as indicators. Maximum score was 15, it's occurred from questionnaire. The patients' adherence to the antibiotics course was determined by counting the remain tablets. Result: The patients' comprehensions were enhanced significantly (p < 0,05) on the group receiving improved labels to 77.7%, both improved instructions and labels to 85% from the maximum score 15. The patients' adherences were increased signifi¬cantly to 63,8% after the intervention of improved verbal instructions, and 51,7% after the intervention of both improved verbal instructions and labels but it was not signifi¬cant statistically. Conclusions: Improving in written instructions or labels increased the patients' com¬prehension of antibiotics. Improving in verbal instructions, especially with simple and action oriented sentences enhanced the patients' adherence to their antibiotics course. Keywords: verbal instructions, labels, patients' adherence, patients' comprehension, antibiotics cours