Design and Care for Discordant Chronic Comorbidities - A Comparison of Healthcare Providers' Perspectives.

Care and support of discordant chronic comorbidities (DCCs) are challenges not only for patients but also for their healthcare providers. DCCs are health conditions in which patients have multiple, often unrelated, chronic illnesses that may need to be addressed concurrently but may also be associated with conflicting treatment instructions. Previous studies show that patients with DCCs reported multiple challenges. Here, we conducted interviews (N = 8) and focus groups (N = 7) with healthcare providers to obtain providers' perspectives. We compare the challenges and views reported by patients and healthcare providers. We suggest design guidelines and technology-mediated ways to address convergent and divergent issues between patients and providers. We recommend future exploration of strategies to simplify and better understand how treatment choices for one condition may impact another and how that exacerbates DCCs care costs.