Evidence-based and pragmatic steps for pharmacists to improve patient adherence.

All strategies and tools to improve the potential outcomes of medications therapy are a waste of time if the clients do not take their medication as prescribed. The aim of this paper is to help pharmacists to help their clients to improve outcomes of medicines based on improving their compliance to evidence-based pharmacotherapy. To reach a good compliance (result), you have to have agreement and concordance (method) between the practitioner and the client. Barriers and strategies for this, including identifying compliance problems and reasons for it, methods for improving information and communication, the client's participation, and responsibility for their own health, are presented mainly based on Cochrane reviews. Also some general pragmatic suggestions for how pharmacists can assist their clients the best are given.