Perceptions of social capital and cost-related non-adherence to medication among the elderly

The aim of this study was to examine the association between social capital and cost-related non-adherence (CRN) in an elderly population, using data from 1,134 respondents to the Greater Metropolitan Belo Horizonte Health Survey. CRN was lower for those elderly with a better perception of attachment to their neighbourhoods (PR = 0.68; 95% CI: 0.50-0.94), with more social contacts (one to five, PR = 0.49; 95% CI: 0.30-0.80 and more than five, PR = 0.42; 95% CI: 0.26-0.67), and with private health insurance coverage (PR = 0.64; 95% CI: 0.45-0.93). Meanwhile, CRN was significantly higher for those with fair to poor self-rated health (PR = 1.66; 95% CI: 0.95-2.90 and PR = 2.62; 95% CI: 1.46-4.71 respectively), with multiple comorbidities (two, PR = 3.45; 95% CI: 1.38-8.62 and three or more, PR = 4.42; 95% CI: 1.74-11.25), and with a lower frequency of physician-patient dialogue about health/treatment (rarely/never, PR = 1.91; 95% CI: 1.16-3.13). These findings highlight the need to take into account the social context in future research on CRN.