Abstract
The Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36) is a widely used measure of health-related quality of life, however, its suitability for frail older persons is not well documented. This study examines the measurement properties of the SF-36 in a frail older patient population. Patients consecutively admitted to two geriatric services (n = 146) were administered the SF-36 and comparative measures on admission and discharge. Internal consistency (0.75-0.91) and test-retest reliability (0.24-0.80) did not meet standards for clinical application of the tool. Four subscales were moderately correlated with comparative measures (Physical Function 0.53 to -0.76; Bodily Pain -0.61; Vitality -0.58; Mental Health -0.63). The results of effect size, standardized response mean, and relative efficiency statistics were consistent in documenting only minimal change for the SF-36 subscales. The SF-36 appears to be reliable and valid, although its ability to monitor clinical change for frail older patients is questionable.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 827-835 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Journal of Clinical Epidemiology |
| Volume | 51 |
| Issue number | 10 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Oct 1998 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This study was supported with a grant from the Camp Hill Medical Centre Research Fund. The National Health Research Development Program (NHRDP) supported this research through a National Health Scholar award to Kenneth Rockwood and through a National Health graduate award to Karen Stadnyk.
ASJC Scopus Subject Areas
- Epidemiology
