Yes especially older patients dont respond much to follow up. But i think being for this fraternity we have to schedule a followup calls to our patients and check up on them for their health,medicines any other issues.
Many patients avoid regular medication reviews and follow-up consultations because they start feeling better after treatment, lack awareness about the importance of follow-up care, face financial or time constraints, fear additional diagnoses, or find hospital visits inconvenient. Poor communication, forgetfulness, and limited access to healthcare services also contribute to missed follow-ups, which can negatively affect treatment outcomes and overall health management.
People in India have a different mindset.. They believe that “if the same medicine will be prescribed by the doctor then why should we go??..” It is just a waste of money.. and most of the people avoid going to the doctor for this reason..that too for many years and continue what they take until nothing wrong happens to them.
When healthcare becomes a privilege, people tend to rely on that single prescription for years. Some people who are daily wagers cannot afford to stand in lines and wait the whole day just to get their prescription updated.
​I remember waiting in line for an OPD ticket for hours, and a group of exhausted and disappointed people nearby kept talking about the massive distance they had to cover to get there, only to find that their appointment had been postponed because the OPD was closed for the day. You can imagine the rest.
​If healthcare were accessible and there were a structured system to address follow-ups—even if handled via telemedicine—it could help overcome a lot of these concerns.
Yes many patients are doing this in regular terms, But this is not the safe way, A years ago or more long medicines are not usually preferable because for today the complications maybe persistent with more severity or less so dr prescribed as per the problem.
What I feel is that most patients in India have something called “blind adherence”: the belief that if something works for them, they are going to continue with it without questions. The same thing is what they apply to medications as well. Some doctor that they have blind trust in must have prescribed it a long time ago; it worked for the severity of their condition then, so they don’t question if that would be applicable or valid for their current scenario.
Regular medication reconciliation needs to be treated as a vital sign at every single healthcare touchpoint. Continuous education on why follow-ups matter is just as vital as the drug itself.
Lack of knowledge about follow-up can be one of the major reasons why they don’t show up for follow-up. Educating and creating awreness can helpthe patients can help them to solve this problem.
They lack knowledge of the importance of regular Follow ups and financial constraints also play a role in not taking follow ups. Many a times dose or drug modifications dont happen on time which leads to more harm than good.
”