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. 2011 Jan-Feb;16(1):13-8.
doi: 10.1155/2011/463407.

Evaluation of the Iconic Pain Assessment Tool by a heterogeneous group of people in pain

Chitra Lalloo  1 , James L Henry
Affiliations

Evaluation of the Iconic Pain Assessment Tool by a heterogeneous group of people in pain

Chitra Lalloo et al. Pain Res Manag. 2011 Jan-Feb.

Abstract
in English, French

The Iconic Pain Assessment Tool (IPAT) is a novel web-based instrument for the self-report of pain quality, intensity and location in the form of a permanent diary. Originally designed for people with central poststroke pain, the tool is being adapted for a larger, more diverse patient population. The present study aimed to collect evaluative feedback on the IPAT from a heterogeneous sample of individuals with chronic pain. The specific study aims were to evaluate participant comfort with the tool including enjoyment, ease of use and comfort with the electronic medium; to assess perceived value of the tool for communicating pain quality, intensity and location; to gauge participant intent to share their pain diaries with others and use the tool on a regular basis to track their pain over time; to assess the perceived descriptiveness of current IPAT icons and the numerical rating scale; and to identify strengths and weaknesses of the tool to refine the existing prototype. Written and verbal feedback from individuals with a variety of chronic pain conditions (n=23) were collected in the context of these objectives. Overall, the IPAT was positively endorsed by this heterogeneous sample of people in pain. The authors concluded that the IPAT is a user-friendly instrument that has the potential to help people express, document and share their personal experience with chronic pain.

L’outil d’évaluation de la douleur par icônes (OÉDI) est un nouvel instrument Web pour autodéclarer la qualité, l’intensité et le foyer de la douleur sous forme de journal permanent. Conçu au départ pour les personnes ayant des douleurs centrales après un accident vasculaire cérébral, l’outil est adapté pour une population de patients plus large et plus diversifiée. La présente étude visait à colliger des commentaires évaluatifs sur l’OÉDI auprès d’un échantillon hétérogène de personnes éprouvant des douleurs chroniques. Les objectifs précis de l’étude consistaient à évaluer la facilité d’usage de l’outil par le participant, y compris le plaisir, la facilité et l’aisance d’utilisation de l’outil électronique, à évaluer la valeur perçue de l’outil pour communiquer la qualité, l’intensité et le foyer de la douleur, à sonder l’intention du participant de partager son journal de douleur avec d’autres et d’utiliser l’outil régulièrement afin de suivre la douleur au fil du temps, à évaluer la perception du caractère descriptif des icônes et de l’échelle d’évaluation numérique de l’OÉDI et à déterminer les forces et les faiblesses de l’outil en vue d’améliorer le prototype actuel.

Les chercheurs ont colligé les commentaires écrits et verbaux de personnes ayant divers troubles de douleur chronique (n=23), compte tenu de ces objectifs. Dans l’ensemble, cet échantillon hétérogène de personnes éprouvant des douleurs a bien accueilli l’OÉDI. Les auteurs ont conclu que l’OÉDI est un instrument convivial qui a le potentiel d’aider les personnes à exprimer, à consigner et à partager leur expérience personnelle de douleur chronique.

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Figures

Figure 1)
Figure 1). Current iteration of the Iconic Pain Assessment Tool (available at www.emiliemcmahon.ca/pain-tool.html)
Reproduced with permission from Émilie McMahon-Lacharité
Figure 2)
Figure 2)
Perceived descriptiveness of the Iconic Pain Assessment Tool icons and numerical rating scale in relation to the quality and intensity of chronic pain, respectively. Frequency distribution of responses and arithmetic means ± SDs are shown for 23 subjects. Note for interpretation: Each individual block represents a single participant response. For instance, a total of three participants gave the numerical rating scale a rating of 7
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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