Table 1 Topics to discuss with qualitative consultant

What is the main qualitative research question?

This should be a “how” or “why” question rather than focused on measuring or counting

How will the qualitative findings be used? What is the goal?

Identifying items for a survey is much faster than developing a detailed description of mental health concepts or healthcare decision-making

Are there sub-groups whom you anticipate will have different experiences from each other (e.g., linguistic groups)?

This is important to know in planning the sample size and recruitment strategy

What forms of data collection might be possible?

If there are existing mental health services, observation or review of clinical records could be used, in addition to interviews and focus group discussions