A patient-oriented approach to the development of a primary care physical activity screen for embedding into electronic medical records.

Physical activity questionnaires exist, but effective implementation in primary care remains an issue. We sought to develop a physical activity screen (PAS) for electronic medical record (EMR) integration by 1) identifying healthcare professionals' (HCPs), patients' and stakeholders' barriers to and preferences for physical activity counselling in primary care; and 2) using the information to co-create the PAS. We conducted semi-structured interviews with primary care HCPs, patients and stakeholders, and used content and thematic analyses to inform iterative co-design of the PAS. Interviews with 38 participants (mean age 41 years) resulted in 2 themes: 1) HCPs are willing to conduct physical activity screening, but acknowledge they don't do it well; and 2) HCPs have limited opportunity and capacity to discuss physical activity, and need a streamlined process for EMR that goes beyond quantifying physical activity. HCPs, patients and stakeholders co-designed a physical activity screen for integration into the EMR that can be tested for feasibility and effects on HCP behaviour and patients' physical activity levels.