Background In France, 40% of people aged over 16 (20 million) report having at least one chronic disease requiring long-term treatment. Compliance is estimated to be 50% on average. Aim To study the practical management of oral treatments at home by people living with one or more chronic diseases. Design & setting Thirty general practitioners in France were invited by e-mail to enrol ten consecutive patients with chronic diseases. Method A quantitative, descriptive, observational, cross-sectional study was carried out using standardised questionnaires to assess the socio-demographic profile of doctors and patients and the management of oral medication at home. Results Twenty general practitioners collected 180 questionnaires: 69.4% said they did not find taking their medication a problem; 42.8% used a pillbox; 79.4% said they knew 'all' their medications. 61% reported forgetting to take their medication. Conclusion More than half of patients are non-adherent. Personalised reminders could reduce unintentional medication non-adherence.