Most patients get prescriptions from doctors

People go to doctor offices for a variety of reasons — for annual physicals, for checkups after previous appointments, to figure out why something is acting up or if they just feel sick. Whatever the reasons, most of them walk out of the office with a prescription in hand, according to an exclusive survey of nearly 800 patients conducted by AccentHealth and DSN in late July and early August.

Of the 784 patients asked "Did your doctor write a prescription(s) during your most recent visit" in a recent poll by AccentHealth and DSN, 59% said "yes," a number that is in line with AccentHealth norms and national estimates.

But do all of those patients actually fill those prescriptions?

According to the Pharmacy Quality Alliance, research has shown that primary medication nonadherence — referring to those patients who don't pick up their first prescriptions — and prescription abandonment may occur in 3% to 28% of patients, costing pharmacies about $10 per prescription returned to stock.

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Do you receive a prescription when you visit your physician?

Source: AccentHealth. To view the methodology, click here.