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. 2022 Aug;134(15-16):569-580.
doi: 10.1007/s00508-021-01809-y. Epub 2021 Feb 4.

Development of a visual tool to assess six dimensions of health and its validation in patients with endocrine disorders

Christian Fazekas  1 , Dennis Linder  2   3 , Franziska Matzer  2 , Christian Vajda  2 , Alexander Avian  4 , Verena Theiler-Schwetz  5 , Christian Trummer  5 , Julia Došen  5 , Jelena Rokvic  2 , Marco Mohl  5 , Stefan Pilz  5
Affiliations

Development of a visual tool to assess six dimensions of health and its validation in patients with endocrine disorders

Christian Fazekas et al. Wien Klin Wochenschr. 2022 Aug.

Abstract

Background: Psychosocial factors significantly influence patient care in many fields of medicine, among these in the field of endocrinology. Easily applicable validated assessment tools for such psychosocial factors are lacking. Visual instruments may facilitate doctor-patient communication. This study describes the development and validation of a multidimensional visual tool for the self-assessment of health.

Methods: An expert panel performed the multistep development of the psychosomatic assessment health disc (PAHD). Assessment of face validity was performed by means of a focus group of medical doctors (n = 6) and patient interviews (n = 24). For determining test-retest reliability, internal consistency and construct validity, patients of an endocrine outpatient clinic in Graz, Austria, completed the PAHD and the following questionnaires: short-form 36 health survey, work ability index, Pittsburgh sleep quality index and the social life scales of the life satisfaction questionnaire.

Results: A numeric six-item analogue scale was developed in the form of a disc. It addresses the following aspects of health: physical well-being, social life, sexuality, mental well-being, sleep, working ability/performance. For the validation process, 177 patients (57.1% females) participated in the study. Correlation coefficients of the six items with other questionnaires ranged between r = 0.51 (social life) and r = 0.72 (sleep). Test-retest reliability was assessed among 98 patients and was ≥ 0.74 for all 6 items, while Cronbach's alpha was 0.78.

Conclusion: The psychometric properties of the PAHD support its use in clinical encounters with patients suffering from endocrine disorders. Further validation studies may be required to extend its application to other fields of medicine.

Keywords: Biopsychosocial model; Endocrinology; Medical encounter; Psychosomatic assessment; Visual analogue scale.

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Conflict of interest statement

C. Fazekas, D. Linder, F. Matzer, C. Vajda, A. Avian, V. Theiler-Schwetz, C. Trummer, J. Došen, J. Rokvic, M. Mohl and S. Pilz declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow chart of the study process
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Final version of the PAHD. Translation to English was conducted based on the final German version by two English native speakers independently translating forth and back
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Original final version of the PAHD in German language with an example of a hexagon derived from answers to the six items
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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