Purpose: Medication nonadherence is one of the most important reasons for treatment failure in patients with
epilepsy. The present study investigated the effectiveness of a multicomponent intervention to improve adherence
to antiepileptic drug (AED) medication in patients with epilepsy.
Methods: In a prospective, randomizedmulticenter trial, three sessions of face-to-facemotivational interviewing
(MI) in combination with complementary behavior change techniques were compared with standard care.Motivational
interviewing prompted change talk and self-motivated statements from the patients, planning their
own medication intake regimen and also identifying and overcoming barriers thatmay prevent adherence. Participants
were provided with calendars to self-monitor their medication taking behavior. A family member and
the health-care teamwere invited to attend the last session ofMI in order to improve the collaboration and communication
between patients, their caregiver or family member, and their health-care provider. At baseline and
6-month follow-up, psychosocial variables and medical adherence were assessed.
Results: In total, 275 participantswere included in the study. Comparedwith the active control group, patients in
the intervention group reported significantly highermedication adherence, aswell as stronger intention and perceptions
of control for taking medication regularly. The intervention group also reported higher levels of action
planning, coping planning, self-monitoring, and lower medication concerns.
Conclusions: This study shows that MI can be effective in clinical practice to improvemedication adherence in patientswith
epilepsy. It also provides evidence that combining volitional interventions, including action planning,
coping planning, and self-monitoring withmotivational interviewing can promote the effectiveness of the medical
treatments for epilepsy by improving adherenc
