Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Ischemic Heart Disease Patients towards Their Medication

Objective: Ischemic heart disease is mostly seen among all Cardiovascular diseases and is responsible for more than 80% of cardiovascular disease deaths. This study has been developed to design and to validate a Knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) Questionnaire in order to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of ischemic heart disease patients towards their medications.

Study Design: Prospective observational study

Methods: The study was conducted for duration of six months among 336 patients. The study subjects taken were above 18 years of age, who was diagnosed with Coronary Artery Disease by a Consultant Cardiologist in Cardiology Department. Practice questionnaires and all the details were explained by the investigator before filling the KAP forms. The data was tabulated and statistically analysed by SPSS software.

Results: 336 patients including both males and females were enrolled in the study. Majority of the patient were having good knowledge about the disease conditions that is 50% of the patients were aware about the ischemic heart disease. 326 (97%) of the 336 research participants were aware of the signs and symptoms of ischemic heart disease. Majority of the patient have an attitude towards the adverse conditions related to the disease i.e. 91.4% were aware of consulting a physician when they came across a side effect. 85.45% of the study subjects think that non-compliance to medication can lead to worsening of their condition. 98.2% of the study subjects are willing to take the treatment recommended by their doctor. Considering the practice, 81.5% the study subjects were ready to follow all the instructions given by the doctor.

Conclusion: Findings from this study provide a better understanding of “knowledge, attitude and practice” in Ischemic heart disease patients towards their medications. Estimating the knowledge, attitude and practices of the community has sufficiently provided crucial baseline information for the implementation of primary and secondary preventive programs.