Adherence

The extent to which a person follows prescribed medical treatments, exercise routines, or therapy programs. In physical therapy and rehabilitation, adherence is often framed as an individual responsibility, with non-adherence viewed as patient failure. However, accessibility research challenges this framing by showing that barriers to adherence are often systemic (insurance limitations, transportation challenges) or physiological (symptom fluctuation, fatigue) rather than motivational. Reframing adherence as an accessibility issue shifts focus from blaming individuals to designing adaptable systems that accommodate variable abilities and circumstances.