Good adherence to antiretroviral therapy is necessary to achieve the best virological response, lower the risk of drug resistance, and reduce morbidity and mortality. High levels of adherence (> 95%) are required for ART to be effective for long term and to prevent the emergence of resistant viral strains. The objective of this study was to assess the adherence to ART among patients on ART at Kuyyu Hospital. A cross sectional study design was used to assess adherence to ART among 152 adults from 24th January- 10th February, 2014. Data was collected using structured questionnaire and analyzed by Stata version 13. The adherence level in this study was 105/152 (69.08%). The major factors significantly affecting adherence were disclosing of HIV status OR 2.2(95%CI 1.08- 4.56), having memory aids OR 15.69(95%CI 6.77- 36.39) and not taking alcohol 2.54 (95%CI 1.24-5.23). The most common reasons for missing (skipping) ART dose were simply forgotten, and away from home. The adherence level of patients on ART was suboptimal. The factors those influencing adherence were not taking alcohol, disclosure status and memory aids.

Keywords: treatment adherence, antiretroviral agents, Ethiopia