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. 2013 Apr;4(2):147-53.
doi: 10.4103/0976-3147.112744.

Development of a cognitive screening instrument for tribal elderly population of Himalayan region in northern India

Sunil Kumar Raina  1 , Sujeet Raina, Vishav Chander, Ashoo Grover, Sukhjit Singh, Ashok Bhardwaj
Affiliations

Development of a cognitive screening instrument for tribal elderly population of Himalayan region in northern India

Sunil Kumar Raina et al. J Neurosci Rural Pract. 2013 Apr.

Abstract

Introduction: Cognitive impairment, characteristic of dementia, is measured objectively by standard neuropsychological (cognitive) tests. Given the diversity of culture and language in India, it is difficult to use a single modified version of MMSE uniformly to Indian population. In this article, we report methods on the development of a cognitive screening instrument suitable for the tribal (Bharmour) elderly (60 years and above) population of Himachal Pradesh, India.

Materials and methods: We used a systematic, item-by-item, process for development of a modified version of MMSE suitable for elderly tribal population.

Results: The modifications made in the English version of MMSE and the pretesting and pilot testing thereof resulted in the development of Bharmouri version of cognitive scale.

Discussion: The study shows that effective modifications can be made to existing tests that require reading and writing; and that culturally sensitive modifications can be made to render the test meaningful and relevant, while still tapping the appropriate cognitive domains.

Keywords: Cognitive; dementia; elderly; scale; tribal.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Map of Himachal Pradesh Showing the study area (Bharmour)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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