Assessment of activities and participation of people by rehabilitation-focused clinical registries: a systematic scoping review.
Ruvistay Gutierrez-Arias, Ximena Neculhueque-Zapata, Raúl Valenzuela-Suazo and 13 others
PMID 37721783WHAT IT FOUND
Most rehabilitation registries track mobility and basic self-care but miss broader life participation.
Clinicians should not assume registry data capture a patient’s full functional picture, especially regarding advanced daily activities and social roles.
Key findings
01Mobility was the most assessed ICF domain (89.7%), while General Tasks and Demands were the least assessed (25.6%).
02Only 15.4% of registries assessed all ICF vital areas, with a median of six domains assessed per registry.
03While 92.3% of registries assessed basic activities of daily living, only 71.8% assessed instrumental activities and 76.9% assessed advanced activities.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
Information on the variables collected was unavailable for 21.1% of the included registries. The mapping of assessment instruments to ICF domains was done by experts, which introduces subjectivity. The review included a small number of registries (71), and one registry contributed the vast majority of unique assessment instruments. The grouping of ADLs into ICF domains was done for practical purposes and may not perfectly reflect the complexity of these activities.
Declared interests
Three authors are employees of the Chilean Ministry of Health, though the paper states they did not work directly on study selection or data analysis. The study was supported by a service provider from the Universidad de La Frontera to the Chilean Ministry of Health.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that registry data reflects a comprehensive picture of patient functioning. The review shows that most registries heavily prioritize mobility and basic self-care, leaving significant gaps in the assessment of social participation and complex daily activities.