COMPLIANCE WITH DEPOT ANTIPSYCHOTIC MEDICATION BY PATIENTS ATTENDING OUTPATIENT CLINICS

Outpatients with schizophrenia often have problems complying with a re gimen of oral antipsychotic medications, Use of depot medications impr oves compliance, but patients' geographic location and access to trans portation may affect compliance with a depot regimen. The authors used retrospective chart review to examine whether patients' geographic lo cation and sociodemographic characteristics and characteristics of the ir medication use were related to compliance with a depot regimen. The subjects were 75 patients attending an urban clinic and 23 patients a ttending a rural clinic in New York State. Median rates of compliance were 94.7 percent for the urban patients and 96.4 percent for the rura l patients, not a significant difference, The only characteristic asso ciated with a decreased compliance rate was a history of substance abu se.