COMMUNICATION AND COMPLIANCE IN EYE CASUALTY

Purpose: This study aimed to assess patients' perceptions and prioriti es when consulting doctors in eye casualty, to assess their satisfacti on with eye casualty and to evaluate and improve patients' level of kn owledge and understanding of their treatment, Methods: A selected cons ecutive group of 130 patients presenting to eye casualty between 1 Jul y and 15 September 1995 was interviewed by two of the authors prior to collecting their medication, A further group was interviewed again af ter collecting their medication from the hospital pharmacist, The hosp ital pharmacist reiterated treatment details when patients collected t heir medication, Interviews were conducted by means of a questionnaire , There was no inter- or intraobserver variation, Patients' priorities and perceptions were measured as percentages of the group. Patient sa tisfaction was measured both by a score on a standardised questionnair e and on a visual analogue scale, Patient recall of treatment details was scored as correct or incorrect. The score prior to and after seein g the pharmacist was compared in those patients who were interviewed a fter collecting their medication, Results: Among the patients 30.8% co nsidered themselves emergencies, 20.8% were referred and the remainder attended for non-urgent reasons. Eighty-three per cent (83.0%) were w holly satisfied with the consultation. The consultation scored an aver age of 8.3, SD 1.6, measured on a visual analogue scale of 0-10. When asked the most important aspects of the consultation 54.6% cited treat ment, 25.4% reassurance and 20.0% diagnosis, Ninety-six per cent felt that their treatment had been adequately explained; however, 78.3% mad e errors when reporting their regimen, A significant improvement in pa tients' level of recall was found after they had received further info rmation from the hospital pharmacist, Conclusions: Firstly, this study shows patients' perceptions and priorities when visiting eye casualty , Secondly, it demonstrates that patients are generally satisfied with their eye casualty attendance, Thirdly, many patients depart with poo r understanding of their eye treatment regime which is likely to affec t compliance, Communication between doctors and patients was enhanced by involvement of the hospital pharmacist, This strategy is applicable not only to an ophthalmic casualty unit but also to a wider range of settings and could provide a service standard for future audit.