4The leader of the proposed treatment group for Paula would act as an expert onmedication adherence and nonadherence reasons. For example, several factors affect adherencesuch as stress, negative mood states, and substance use, so it would be vital that the group leaderalso be an expert on all of these factors and more (Hersch et al., 2013).Advantages and DisadvantagesGroup treatment comes with advantages and disadvantages. There is strong evidence forgroup settings as a way to provide education and much needed social interaction for individuals.Studies show that individuals with social supports have higher medication adherence rates thanthose without social support (MacDonald et al., 2016). In further support of a group settingversus an individual setting, a retrospective study on women with HIV showed that those whoattended support groups had a higher post-diagnosis mortality rate than those who did not attendsupport groups (Summers et al., 2000).A disadvantage of treatment groups as they apply to Paula is her bipolar disorderdiagnosis. The psychological issues that characterize bipolar disorder may make group workdifficult for Paula (Toseland & Rivas, 2017, p. 18).ConclusionAccording to her physician, Paula Cortez is a complicated patient presenting with acomplicated situation (Walden University, n.d.). She certainly does present with severalconcerning issues. However, her noncompliance with her prescribed medications for HIV/AIDSand bipolar disorder is most pressing. The best intervention for this would be a treatment groupfor women with HIV whose purpose would be increasing medication adherence. Through thegroup, Paula would also reap the benefits of a social support system, which she is currentlylacking.
