Patient experiences with the Assessment of Burden of Chronic Conditions (ABCC) tool in primary care: a qualitative study.

Patients generally expressed satisfaction with the ABCC tool's comprehensive questionnaire, user-friendly design, and clear visualisation.

• Fourteen patients with COPD, asthma, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and/or chronic heart failure (CHF) were recruited for this qualitative phenomenological study.
• Participants were recruited from a previously conducted quasi-experimental study on the effectiveness of the ABCC tool.
• Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data on patient perspectives.
• Participants appreciated the opportunity the tool facilitated for discussions with healthcare providers and help with monitoring.

Some patients experienced confusion around the grey balloons in the ABCC tool, highlighting the need for clearer explanations.

• The grey balloons were a specific visual element of the ABCC tool that caused confusion among participants.
• This confusion was identified as an area requiring improvement in the tool's design or accompanying explanation.
• The finding suggests that not all visual elements of the tool were immediately intuitive to patients.

Participants had limited awareness of the advanced treatment recommendation functions of the ABCC tool.

• Despite generally positive experiences, patients were not fully aware of all features available within the ABCC tool.
• The limited awareness of treatment recommendation functions suggests that patient education or onboarding around the tool may be insufficient.
• This finding points to a gap between the tool's capabilities and patients' utilisation of those capabilities.

The ABCC tool was found to facilitate shared decision-making and self-management in primary care consultations for patients with chronic conditions.

• The ABCC tool offers a unique approach to chronic disease management by facilitating shared decision-making and self-management.
• Participants appreciated how the tool helped facilitate discussions with healthcare providers.
• The tool was used in the context of primary care, where most chronic care takes place.
• The study population included patients with COPD, asthma, T2DM, and/or CHF, reflecting the multimorbidity context.

Recall bias and limited awareness of certain features were identified as challenges in patients' experiences with the ABCC tool.

• Recall bias was acknowledged as a limitation affecting the qualitative findings.
• Limited awareness of certain features of the ABCC tool was noted as a challenge alongside recall bias.
• Despite these challenges, participants generally expressed satisfaction with using the tool.
• The authors concluded that the tool shows promise as a valuable instrument for improving consultations in clinical practice.