Table 2.

Summary of themes derived from online comments and the number of endorsements from each participant group.

Group	Theme	Clinicians (n = 29)	Patients (n = 28)	Public (n = 49)
Content	Would want more information about topics addressed in report (family implications, screening, treatment, next steps)	20	17	39
Content	The use of simple diagrams and figures is helpful. Avoid unfamiliar designs	11	13	15
Content	Want more detailed information about syndrome/condition (e.g. prognosis, prevalence)	5	6	9
Content	Helpful to include separated technical section	5	5	4
Content	Ambiguous wording of result unhelpful	4	0	2
Content	Would like more information about the test statistics (sensitivity, specificity etc.)	4	1	1
Content	Technical section may cause fear or confusion	3	1	0
Content	Include glossary to help with technical terms	0	2	0
Content	Unhelpful to include technical section	2	0	0
Content	Inclusion of patient details useful	0	1	0
Design	Clearly labelled sections, white space, avoiding columns, and avoiding dense blocks of text, all help with comprehension	24	22	45
Design	The appropriate use of colour helps delineate sections, but avoid it in communicating test result	12	12	26
Design	Prominence of result helpful	2	4	2
Design	Prominence of result alarming/stark	2	0	3
Design	Use large enough font	1	0	1
Comm. Style	Be concise and clear, with a personal tone, but avoid brevity at the expense of important detail.	14	14	10
Comm. Style	Patient section easy to understand, technical section is difficult	11	6	7
Comm. Style	Technical details difficult to understand	6	5	12
Comm. Style	Use lay language and avoid jargon	4	6	4
Comm. Style	Make clear who the audience is for the technical section	2	0	0
Trust	Trust of result based on technical aspects of test	7	4	5
Trust	Trust result because sourced by NHS	4	0	12
Trust	Trust of result based on appearance of document	6	0	4
Trust	Trust if confirmed by another test	1	1	2
Trust	Trust result because signed	1	0	2
Trust	Trust based on comprehension of report	0	0	2