MED-HELP Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Complex intervention comprising text MEssaging anD HEalthcare professionaL training for imProving statin adherence in primary care: a pragmatic cluster-randomised controlled trial (MED-HELP)
IRAS ID
280020
Contact name
Kamlesh Khunti
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Leicester
ISRCTN Number
ISRCTN13245243
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Most patients who either have or are at risk of developing heart disease should be prescribed drugs, known as statins. These reduce the amount of unhealthy cholesterol (fat) in their blood. However, a large number of patients are not receiving or taking these drugs in the way that they should be. When patients take or are prescribed less statins than is recommended, they are at greater health risk, are more likely to have future heart problems and are more likely to die earlier than expected.
Patients often do not take statins regularly when they are prescribed them, either because they forget, or because they believe they are unnecessary or will have unwanted side effects. Previous research has shown that text message reminders may help patients to take medications more regularly. Furthermore, healthcare staff sometimes do not prescribe the correct amount of statins to patients who need them. This puts patients at risk.
After recruiting the required number of practices, we will identify patients who are in need of support in taking their statins regularly. In half the practices we will then support practices to send text messages to these patients to remind them to take their statins regularly. These patients will receive these messages for 15 months, after which we will measure if this has affected how regularly they collect their statins. Healthcare staff from these practices will also be invited to attend training to help them support their patients to take enough statins, and then measure if this has affected prescriptions 15 months later. There will be no change to the prescribing procedures in the other practices. Comparison of the two groups of practices will tell us if the combination of text message reminders and training for doctors has decreased cholesterol levels in these patients.REC name
East Midlands - Leicester Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/EM/0272
Date of REC Opinion
21 Jan 2022
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion