What is directly observed therapy (DOT)?

Directly observed therapy (DOT) is done when it is very important that a person takes every dose of medicine. For DOT, a health professional watches each time a person takes his or medicine.

During DOT, a person must go to a hospital, clinic or doctor's office to take the medicine. Or a health professional may come to the person's home, workplace or other location to make sure that he or she takes the medicine.

DOT often is done when treating diseases that are easily spread to other people, such as tuberculosis (TB). Studies have shown that DOT improves the success of TB treatment. DOT may also be done during clinical trials to find out whether a medicine works against a certain disease.