Table 3 Interview Guide for Healthcare Providers

Experiences in Helping Older Patients to Manage Multiple Chronic Conditions

 1. Tell me about your experiences in providing care to older patients who are managing more than one condition at a time.

 2. What do you do to help them manage multiple chronic conditions?

 3. How do you help older patients prevent their conditions from getting worse or new ones from developing?

 4. How do you make decisions about managing more than one chronic condition at a time?

 5. How do you make decisions about managing multiple medications?

 6. From your experience what are the most important needs of family caregivers of older patients managing more than one condition at a time?

 7. How do you support family members of older patients who have multiple chronic conditions?

Facilitators in Managing Multiple Chronic Conditions

 8. What helps you to manage older patient’s chronic conditions (i.e. people, resources)?

Challenges and Rewards in Managing Multiple Chronic Conditions

 9. What is your greatest challenge in helping older patients manage a number of conditions at the same time?

 10. What makes it difficult for you to provide care to this group of patients?

 11. What are some rewards in helping older patients manage a number of conditions at the same time?

Health and Social Services

 12. Do you refer older patients with multiple chronic conditions to any health and social services?

Making Treatment Decisions with Health Professionals

 13. Older patients with multiple chronic conditions often require multiple services. What mechanisms are in place to foster collaboration and coordination of care among multiple providers, services, settings and sectors?

 14. How do you normally make treatment decisions with older patients who have multiple chronic conditions?

Goals of Care

 15. What are your goals when caring for older adults with multiple chronic conditions?

 16. How do you develop goals for the care of older patients with multiple chronic conditions?

 17. How do you evaluate the success of the strategies that you use with this population?

 18. What technology supports do you use to help support older patients with multiple chronic conditions? Please share your experience with using these.

 19. Is there anything else you would like to share about providing care to older persons who have multiple chronic conditions, and supporting their family members?