The paper deals with the planning of eHealth systems in the area of chronic care from a patient-centred perspective. The particular area is heart failure (HF) and systems that support patients’ possibilities to be active learners during the care processes. A better understanding of this process is hoped to create a basis for the development of appropriate information systems or information technology (IS/IT) support of learning processes. The objective of this paper is the development of a better understanding of the challenges of chronic illness with special focus on HF. The results are presented as a planning framework that guides the choice and design of ICT-based support systems.