The Problem: ADHD Treatment Adherence
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) affects approximately 11% of children in the United States.
Despite being one of the most treatable psychiatric conditions, ADHD has low long-term treatment adherence, with rates dropping to less than 20% after the first year.
Common barriers to adherence include:
- Forgetfulness and lack of routine follow-through
- Complexity of treatment, including stimulant medication schedules and side effects
- Misconceptions about ADHD and its treatment, including doubts about medication effectiveness
The challenge is not treatment availability – it is sustained adherence and informed support at home.
What is SOFIA?
SOFIA is a text-based support program designed to help parents manage and support their child’s ADHD treatment journey.
Targeted at parents of children aged 6-12 who are newly prescribed stimulant medication, SOFIA provides timely, structured SMS-based guidance to improve adherence and overall treatment experience.
The program delivers:
- Educational content addressing misconceptions about ADHD and medication
- Interactive prompts (e.g., true/false, Q&A) to reinforce understanding
- Practical tools to support school, home life, and social development
- Adaptive messaging based on user behavior and prescription refill patterns
SOFIA extends care beyond the clinical setting – supporting families in managing ADHD in everyday life.
Outcomes
SOFIA has demonstrated:
- Improved medication adherence
- 85% or participants in the SMS program refilled prescriptions on time, compared to 62% receiving standard care
- Effective support for behavior and treatment management
- Ongoing messaging helped parents better manage routines, school engagement, and daily challenges
- Increased understanding of ADHD and treatment
- Interactive content addressed misconceptions and reinforced key knowledge over time
- Personalized engagement through adaptive messaging
- Messaging tailored to refill behavior and user interaction supported sustained participation
The Team
SOFIA was co-created by:
- Dr. Joseph Biederman
- Chief of the Clinical and Research Programs in Pediatric Psychopharmacology and Adult ADHD
- Director, Alan and Lorraine Bressler Clinical and Research Program for Autism Spectrum Disorders, Massachusetts General Hospital
- Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
- MEMOTEXT Corporation