Advancing behavioural guidance systems to help conserve the European eel (Anguilla anguilla).

Medication discrepancies (MDs) refer to a lack of agreement between medication regimens across transitions in care, operationally defined as any difference between pretransition and posttransition medication lists [, ]. MDs encompass two primary aspects: prescribing issues and patient adherence to medication regimens [], and they are frequently implicated in adverse drug events, healthcare resource utilization [], and increased risk of patient harm []. Given these potential consequences, ensuring medication safety during care transitions has become a priority for healthcare systems worldwide. For instance, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires hospitals to establish processes for obtaining, documenting, and communicating complete medication information to ensure continuity of care []. Despite such efforts, MDs remain common and are closely associated with various health hazards and increased healthcare burdens, including an elevated risk of patient harm [, , ] and greater use of hospital and emergency services []. Observational studies in China indicate a high incidence of MDs among older adults with chronic conditions. For instance, reported rates of MDs range from 50.3% in older patients with chronic kidney disease to 83.0% in older patients with chronic cardiovascular or respiratory conditions [–]. Among patients with diabetes, reported MD rates during the discharge transition range from 58.0% to 79.5% [, ]. Therefore, within the context of China’s aging society and the high prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among the elderly [, ], the health, familial, and socioeconomic burdens potentially resulting from MDs are likely to be more pronounced. The World Health Organization defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” []. As a measure of an individual’s self-perceived health status [], health-related quality of life (HRQoL) has been widely regarded as a key observational indicator and an important endpoint in medical research [, ]. HRQoL is extensively applied in health assessment and disease burden analyses. Numerous studies have shown that HRQoL is closely associated with self-management behaviors [], treatment adherence [], and prognosis [, ] in patients with various diseases, including diabetes. HRQoL may be a factor associated with the occurrence of MDs in patients. One study noted an association between MDs and patients’ physical health status and subjective well-being during care transitions []. Furthermore, among patients with chronic conditions, varying levels of HRQoL are often accompanied by changes in treatment adherence, which may further be associated with the risk of MDs. However, conclusions regarding this relationship appear inconsistent in current research. Agh et al. (2015) pointed out a bidirectional association between medication adherence and HRQoL, where adherence may be associated with HRQoL through treatment effects and side effects, and improved HRQoL may also trigger non-adherent behaviors in patients []; Holt et al. (2010), on the other hand, suggested that lower HRQoL may constitute a significant barrier to achieving high medication adherence [].