Developing the content of a locomotor disability scale for adults in Bangladesh: a qualitative study.
Ilias Mahmud, Lynda Clarke, George B Ploubidis
PMID 29340201WHAT IT FOUND
Interviews with adults with mobility impairments in Bangladesh produced a 70-item locomotor disability scale covering mobility, self-care, work and leisure.
It adds local activities and definitions to reduce misinterpretation.
Key findings
01Interviews identified 70 disability indicators across mobility, self-care, work and leisure for the scale.
02Cognitive interviews led to splitting double questions, adding definitions for indicators, and clarifying response options.
03The item list includes sitting on the floor, squatting, walking inside the home and praying.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
This was a qualitative content development study, not a test of whether the scale works, is reliable or valid. All interviews were done with people accessing one rehabilitation centre in Bangladesh, so they may not represent adults who use other services or no services. People with cognitive or psychiatric co-morbidities, people unable to speak and people with medical emergencies were excluded. Cognitive interviews were not recorded, only noted by interviewers. The item list contains few leisure activities, and respondents may have prioritised self-care and work. Sexual activities were not included because no respondent mentioned them, possibly because of embarrassment or stigma.
Declared interests
The only funding information supplied is that the funder was the European Union.
The easy way to misread this
Do not use this scale as a proven outcome measure. The paper only describes content development from interviews, and it states that the scale still needs testing.