Table 3.

Major Themes of Focus Group Discussions and Key Ideas Emerging From Themes

Major themes of focus group discussions	Key ideas emerging from themes
Theme 1: Knowledge, Perceptions, and Understanding of FH	•Limited knowledge of providers about FH, including prevalence and complications of FH •Physicians equate the risk from FH to any other cause of hypercholesterolemia •Low familiarity with FH due to subspecialization •Limited relevance of FH diagnosis in older patients and those with comorbidities •Management of FH felt to be beyond the scope of provider’s practice •A campaign is needed to increase FH awareness
Theme 2: Facilitators for the Successful Implementation of a CDS Tool for FH	•An automated algorithm to detect patients with FH •An alert that is brief, provides evidence-based guidelines, and does not add to clinician burden •Inform patients about the condition to facilitate decision making
Theme 3: Barriers to Successful Implementation of a CDS Tool for FH	•Limited clinician time and expertise to manage patients with FH •Alert fatigue •Patients not concerned/aware of risk from FH due to lack of symptoms •Comorbidities may relegate FH to the background •Limited understanding of the role of and interpretation of genetic testing for FH
Theme 4: Recommendations for the Development of a CDS Tool for FH	•Succinct alert with limited technical jargon •Providing a “snooze button” for an FH alert •Using passive alert systems (eg, Infobuttons) •Provide means of facilitating family communication •Providing links to knowledge resources (eg, AskMayoExpert)

CDS = clinical decision support; FH = familial hypercholesterolemia.