Systematic Review Of Measures Research Articles

Sustainability of Credit Union: A Systematic Review of Measurement and Determinants

ABSTRACT Credit union is considered as an alternative solution for global poverty and financial inclusiveness for social development. However, to achieve this goal, first and foremost a credit union must be sustainable. The purpose of this paper is to provide a systematic literature review on the key determinants of sustainability of credit unions and its measurements through comprehensive literature search and assessment based on the PRISMA-P guidelines. The findings reveal standard quantitative measures such as operations of self-sufficiency ratio, financial sustainability score, return on assets and pearl index (two studies qualitatively assessed governance structure and membership rate as measures). Additionally, key factors such as efficiency, loan management factors, deposit mobilization, portfolio at risk, credit risk, regulatory environment, and asset factors are significant determinants of sustainability of credit unions. The findings suggest a great need for complementarity of role and responsible conduct of the key stakeholders (members), staff, management and enabling regulatory environment for sustainable credit union.

Essential data dimensions for prospective international data collection in older age bipolar disorder (OABD): Recommendations from the GAGE-BD group.

By 2030, over 50% of individuals living with bipolar disorder (BD) are expected to be aged ≥50 years. However, older age bipolar disorder (OABD) remains understudied. There are limited large-scale prospectively collected data organized in key dimensions capable of addressing several fundamental questions about BD affecting this subgroup of patients. We developed initial recommendations for the essential dimensions for OABD data collection, based on (1) a systematic review of measures used in OABD studies, (2) a Delphi consensus of international OABD experts, (3) experience with harmonizing OABD data in the Global Aging & Geriatric Experiments in Bipolar Disorder Database (GAGE-BD, n≥ 4500 participants), and (4) critical feedback from 34 global experts in geriatric mental health. We identified 15 key dimensions and variables within each that are relevant for the investigation of OABD: (1) demographics, (2) core symptoms of depression and (3) mania, (4) cognition screening and subjective cognitive function, (5) elements for BD diagnosis, (6) descriptors of course of illness, (7) treatment, (8) suicidality, (9) current medication, (10) psychiatric comorbidity, (11) psychotic symptoms, (12) general medical comorbidities, (13) functioning, (14) family history, and (15) other. We also recommend particular instruments for capturing some of the dimensions and variables. The essential data dimensions we present should be of use to guide future international data collection in OABD and clinical practice. In the longer term, we aim to establish a prospective consortium using this core set of dimensions and associated variables to answer research questions relevant to OABD.

Assessing physical access to healthy food across United Kingdom: A systematic review of measures and findings.

BackgroundExisting research suggests that physical access to food can affect diet quality and thus obesity rates. When defining retail food environment (RFE) quantitatively, there is a little agreement on how to measure “lack of healthy food” and what parameters to use, resulting in a heterogeneity of study designs and outcome measures. In turn, this leads to a conflicting evidence base being one of the many barriers to using evidence in policy‐making.AimsThis systematic review aimed to identify and describe methods used to assess food accessibility in the United Kingdom (UK) to overcome heterogeneity by providing a classification of measures.Materials & MethodsThe literature search included electronic and manual searches of peer‐reviewed literature and was restricted to studies published in English between January 2010 and March 2021. A total of 9365 articles were assessed for eligibility, of which 44 articles were included in the review. All included studies were analysed with regards to their main characteristics (e.g., associations between variables of interest, setting, sample, design, etc.) and definition of RFE and its metrics. When defining these metrics, the present review distinguishes between a point of origin (centroid, address) from which distance was calculated, summary statistic of accessibility (proximity, buffer, Kernel), and definition of distance (Euclidean, network distance). Trends, gaps and limitations are identified and recommendations made for food accessibility research in UK.ResultsMultiple theoretical and methodological constructs are currently used, mostly quantifying distance by means of Euclidean and ring‐buffer distance, using both proximity‐ and density‐based approaches, and ranging from absolute to relative measures. The association between RFE and diet and health in rural areas, as well as a spatiotemporal domain of food access, remains largely unaccounted.DiscussionEvidence suggests that the duration of exposure may bear a greater importance than the level of exposure and that density‐based measures may better capture RFE when compared with proximity‐based measures, however, using more complex measures not necessarily produce better results. To move the field forward, studies have called for a greater focus on causality, individual access and the use of various measures, neighbourhood definitions and potential confounders to capture different aspects and dimensions of the RFE, which requires using univariate measures of accessibility and considering the overall context in terms of varying types of neighbourhoods.ConclusionIn order to render ongoing heterogeneity in measuring RFE, researchers should prioritise measures that may provide a more accurate and realistic account of people’s lives and follow an intuitive approach based on convergence of results until consensus could be reached on using some useful standards.

Insight in nonpsychotic disorders: A new model of insight and a systematic review of measures.

There is substantial research examining insight in psychotic disorders and in some nonpsychotic disorders. However, there has been little attention given to many nonpsychotic disorders. Research on insight in psychosis distinguishes between cognitive and clinical insight. In most studies examining insight in nonpsychotic disorders, definitions and assessments of insight vary significantly. The purpose of this review is to suggest a definition of insight in nonpsychotic disorders such that it can be used across different disorders. We systematically review the extant literature of insight in nonpsychotic disorders and analyze the assessments used in order to determine how well they capture these two types of insight. Then, we discuss how these two constructs can provide better understanding of the phenomenology of insight in nonpsychotic disorders. The systematic search resulted in 99 articles. These articles used 17 different methods of measuring insight, containing 127 questions. Results of the content analysis of items suggested that measures of insight used in nonpsychotic disorders do not distinguish between cognitive and clinical insight, but that most questions (90%) can indeed be reliably differentiated. We provide a multidimensional model of cognitive and clinical insight in nonpsychotic disorders, emphasizing the complexity of assessment and the importance of accurately defining insight. Such definitions have important theoretical and clinical implications, offering a better understanding of the concept of insight in nonpsychotic disorders.

School health assessment tools: a systematic review of measurement in primary schools.

Background This systematic review aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the school health’s assessment tools in primary schools through COSMIN Risk of Bias checklist. We examined the studies that have addressed the measurement properties of school-health instruments to give a clear overview of the quality of all available tools measuring school health in primary schools. This systematic review was registered in PROPERO with the Registration ID: CRD42020158158.MethodDatabases of EBSCOhost, PubMed, ProQuest, Wily, PROSPERO, and OpenGrey were systematically searched without any time limitation to find all full-text English journal articles studied at least one of the COSMIN checklist measurement properties of a school-health assessment tool in primary schools. The instruments should be constructed based on a school health model. The eligible studies were assessed by COSMIN Risk of Bias checklist to report their quality of methodology for each measurement property and for the whole study by rating high, moderate or low quality.ResultsAt the final screening just seven studies remained for review. Four studies were tool development, three of them were rated as “adequate” and the other study as “very good”; five studies examined the content validity, three of them were appraised as “very good”, and the two remaining as “inadequate”. All seven studies measured structural validity, three of them were evaluated as “very good”, three other were scored as “adequate”, and the last study as “inadequate”. All the seven studies investigated the internal consistency, five of them were assessed as “very good”, one was rated as “doubtful”, and the last one as “inadequate”. Just one study examined the cross-cultural validity and was rated as “adequate”. Finally, all seven studies measured reliability, two of them were rated as “very good” and the rest five studies were appraised as “doubtful”. All rating was based on COSMIN checklist criteria for quality of measurement properties assessment.ConclusionThe number of studies addressing school health assessment tools was very low and therefore not sufficient. Hence, there is a serious need to investigate the psychometric properties of the available instruments measuring school health at primary schools. Moreover, the studies included in the present systematic review did not fulfill all the criteria of the COSMIN checklist for assessing measurement properties. We suggest that future studies consider these criteria for measuring psychometric properties and developing school health assessment tools.

Measuring implementation outcomes: An updated systematic review of measures' psychometric properties.

Systematic reviews of measures can facilitate advances in implementation research and practice by locating reliable and valid measures and highlighting measurement gaps. Our team completed a systematic review of implementation outcome measures published in 2015 that indicated a severe measurement gap in the field. Now, we offer an update with this enhanced systematic review to identify and evaluate the psychometric properties of measures of eight implementation outcomes used in behavioral health care. The systematic review methodology is described in detail in a previously published protocol paper and summarized here. The review proceeded in three phases. Phase I, data collection, involved search string generation, title and abstract screening, full text review, construct assignment, and measure forward searches. Phase II, data extraction, involved coding psychometric information. Phase III, data analysis, involved two trained specialists independently rating each measure using PAPERS (Psychometric And Pragmatic Evidence Rating Scales). Searches identified 150 outcomes measures of which 48 were deemed unsuitable for rating and thus excluded, leaving 102 measures for review. We identified measures of acceptability (N = 32), adoption (N = 26), appropriateness (N = 6), cost (N = 31), feasibility (N = 18), fidelity (N = 18), penetration (N = 23), and sustainability (N = 14). Information about internal consistency and norms were available for most measures (59%). Information about other psychometric properties was often not available. Ratings for internal consistency and norms ranged from "adequate" to "excellent." Ratings for other psychometric properties ranged mostly from "poor" to "good." While measures of implementation outcomes used in behavioral health care (including mental health, substance use, and other addictive behaviors) are unevenly distributed and exhibit mostly unknown psychometric quality, the data reported in this article show an overall improvement in availability of psychometric information. This review identified a few promising measures, but targeted efforts are needed to systematically develop and test measures that are useful for both research and practice. When implementing an evidence-based treatment into practice, it is important to assess several outcomes to gauge how effectively it is being implemented. Outcomes such as acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness may offer insight into why providers do not adopt a new treatment. Similarly, outcomes such as fidelity and penetration may provide important context for why a new treatment did not achieve desired effects. It is important that methods to measure these outcomes are accurate and consistent. Without accurate and consistent measurement, high-quality evaluations cannot be conducted. This systematic review of published studies sought to identify questionnaires (referred to as measures) that ask staff at various levels (e.g., providers, supervisors) questions related to implementation outcomes, and to evaluate the quality of these measures. We identified 150 measures and rated the quality of their evidence with the goal of recommending the best measures for future use. Our findings suggest that a great deal of work is needed to generate evidence for existing measures or build new measures to achieve confidence in our implementation evaluations.

Measuring readiness for implementation: A systematic review of measures' psychometric and pragmatic properties.

Systematic measure reviews can facilitate advances in implementation research and practice by locating reliable, valid, pragmatic measures; identifying promising measures needing refinement and testing; and highlighting measurement gaps. This review identifies and evaluates the psychometric and pragmatic properties of measures of readiness for implementation and its sub-constructs as delineated in the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research: leadership engagement, available resources, and access to knowledge and information. The systematic review methodology is described fully elsewhere. The review, which focused on measures used in mental or behavioral health, proceeded in three phases. Phase I, data collection, involved search string generation, title and abstract screening, full text review, construct assignment, and cited citation searches. Phase II, data extraction, involved coding relevant psychometric and pragmatic information. Phase III, data analysis, involved two trained specialists independently rating each measure using Psychometric and Pragmatic Evidence Rating Scales (PAPERS). Frequencies and central tendencies summarized information availability and PAPERS ratings. Searches identified 9 measures of readiness for implementation, 24 measures of leadership engagement, 17 measures of available resources, and 6 measures of access to knowledge and information. Information about internal consistency was available for most measures. Information about other psychometric properties was often not available. Ratings for internal consistency were "adequate" or "good." Ratings for other psychometric properties were less than "adequate." Information on pragmatic properties was most often available regarding cost, language readability, and brevity. Information was less often available regarding training burden and interpretation burden. Cost and language readability generally exhibited "good" or "excellent" ratings, interpretation burden generally exhibiting "minimal" ratings, and training burden and brevity exhibiting mixed ratings across measures. Measures of readiness for implementation and its sub-constructs used in mental health and behavioral health care are unevenly distributed, exhibit unknown or low psychometric quality, and demonstrate mixed pragmatic properties. This review identified a few promising measures, but targeted efforts are needed to systematically develop and test measures that are useful for both research and practice. Successful implementation of effective mental health or behavioral health treatments in service delivery settings depends in part on the readiness of the service providers and administrators to implement the treatment; the engagement of organizational leaders in the implementation effort; the resources available to support implementation, such as time, money, space, and training; and the accessibility of knowledge and information among service providers about the treatment and how it works. It is important that the methods for measuring these factors are dependable, accurate, and practical; otherwise, we cannot assess their presence or strength with confidence or know whether efforts to increase their presence or strength have worked. This systematic review of published studies sought to identify and evaluate the quality of questionnaires (referred to as measures) that assess readiness for implementation, leadership engagement, available resources, and access to knowledge and information. We identified 56 measures of these factors and rated their quality in terms of how dependable, accurate, and practical they are. Our findings indicate there is much work to be done to improve the quality of available measures; we offer several recommendations for doing so.

Consumer health information needs: A systematic review of measures

Information needs motivate human information behavior. Knowledge of information needs is critical for user-centered information behavior research and system design. In consumer health information behavior research, there is a lack of understanding of how consumer health information needs (CHIN) is measured in empirical studies. This study is a systematic review of empirical quantitative studies on CHIN, with a focus on how CHIN is defined and operationalized. A search of six academic databases and citation-track of relevant articles identified a total of 216 relevant articles. These articles were analyzed using the qualitative content analysis method. We found that few included articles explicitly defined either CHIN or information needs in general. When definitions were given, they were from a cognitive perspective and largely ignored the multidimensionality of the concept. Consistent with this cognitive-centered conceptualization, CHIN was operationalized primarily as information topics, with some articles also measuring several additional attributes, including level of importance, fulfilment, amount of information needed, and frequency of needs. These findings suggest that CHIN is undertheorized. To address this gap, future studies should attend to social and emotional dimensions of CHIN, such as motivations, goals, activities, and emotions. Further, more research is needed to understand how CHIN is related to consumer health information seeking behavior and to the social and environmental context in which the needs arise.

Racial Segregation Across U.S. Nursing Homes: A Systematic Review of Measurement and Outcomes.

Nursing homes remain subjected to institutional racial segregation in the United States. However, a standardized approach to measure segregation in nursing homes does not appear to be established. A systematic review was conducted to identify all formal measurement approaches to evaluate racial segregation among nursing home facilities, and to then identify the association between segregation and quality of care in this context. PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched (January 2018) for publications relating to nursing home segregation. Following the PRISMA guidelines, studies were included that formally measured racial segregation of nursing homes residents across facilities with regional-level data. Eight studies met the inclusion criteria. Formal segregation measures included the Dissimilarity Index, Disparities Quality Index, Modified Thiel's Entropy Index, Gini coefficient, and adapted models. The most common data sources were the Minimum Data Set (MDS; resident-level), the Certification and Survey Provider Enhanced Reporting data (CASPER; facility-level), and the Area Resource File/ U.S. Census Data (regional-level). Most studies showed evidence of racial segregation among U.S. nursing home facilities and documented a negative impact of segregation on racial minorities and facility-level quality outcomes. The measurement of racial segregation among nursing homes is heterogeneous. While there are limitations to each methodology, this review can be used as a reference when trying to determine the best approach to measure racial segregation in future studies. Moreover, racial segregation among nursing homes remains a problem and should be further evaluated.

How can stress resilience be monitored? A systematic review of measurement in humans

Stress resilience studies focus on resilience operationalised within the context of stressors. Currently, there is no clear operationalisation of stress resilience in humans. To identify and critically examine measures used to assess stress resilience. A systematic review of English and non-English articles using PubMed (including MEDLINE), Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, ScienceDirect, and CINAHL was conducted. No date limits were set. Search terms included stress resilience, resilience to stress, stress resilient, and humans. Studies were selected based on pre-determined eligibility criteria. Empirical, quantitative research studies that measured individual stress resilience in humans were eligible for inclusion in this review. Two researchers conducted independent extraction of articles based on predefined fields, focusing on types of measures used. A narrative synthesis was used to present the findings, structured around the types of instruments used and conceptual focuses of these measures. We identified a number of measures, both self-report and performance based. We highlight the heterogeneity in operationalisation of stress resilience and suggest that, in future, researchers’ state operationalised definitions of stress resilience overtly to decrease confusion.

Assessment of patient information needs: A systematic review of measures.

BackgroundProviding patient information is a central aspect of patient-centered care. Fulfilling personal information needs has positive effects on several health-related outcomes. Measurement instruments help to identify individual information needs in an effective way. The present study gives an overview of existing information needs measures and further evaluates the quality of their psychometric properties and their psychometric studies.MethodsWe conducted a systematic search on psychometric studies of measures that assess information needs in PubMed and Embase. Furthermore, we carried out a secondary search with reference and citation tracking of the included articles. Title, abstracts and full texts were screened by two independent reviewers for eligibility. We extracted data on content of the measures, validation samples and psychometric properties. In addition we rated the methodological quality with the COSMIN checklist and the quality of psychometric properties with the criteria of Terwee and colleagues.Results24 studies on 21 measures were included. Most instruments assessed information needs of patients with cancer or cardiac diseases. The majority of the instruments were in English language and from western countries. Most studies included information on internal consistency and content validity. The ratings showed mixed results with clear deficiencies in the methodological quality of most studies.DiscussionThis is the first systematic review that summarized the existing evidence on measures on patient information needs using two instruments for a systematic quality assessment. The results show a need for more psychometric studies on existing measures. In addition, reporting on psychometric studies needs to be improved to be able to evaluate the reliability of the psychometric properties. Furthermore, we were not able to identify any measures on information needs for some frequent chronic diseases. Other methods to elicit information needs (e.g. open-ended interviews, question prompt sheets) could be considered as alternatives if sound measures are missing.

Gender, power, and violence: A systematic review of measures and their association with male perpetration of IPV.

IntroductionHarmful gender norms, views on the acceptability of violence against women, and power inequities in relationships have been explored as key drivers of male perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV). Yet such antecedents have been inconsistently measured in the empirical literature. This systematic review aimed to identify which measures of gender inequitable norms, views, relations and practices are currently being used in the field, and which are most closely tied with male IPV perpetration.MethodsWe searched five electronic databases to identify studies published between 2000 and 2015 that reported the association between such gender inequities and male perpetration of IPV. Identified scales were categorized by content area and level of generality, as well as other attributes, and we compared the consistency of scale performance across each category.ResultsTwenty-three studies were identified, employing 64 measures. Scales were categorized into three main thematic areas: views on gender roles/norms, acceptance of violence against women, and gender-related inequities in relationship power and control. We also classified whether the scale was oriented to respondents’ own views, or what they believed others do or think. While overall, measures were positively associated with IPV perpetration in 45% of cases, this finding varied by scale type. Measures inclusive of acceptance of violence against women or beliefs about men’s sexual entitlement, followed by scales that measured respondents’ views on gender roles/norms, were most consistently associated with IPV perpetration. Measures of relationship power showed less consistent associations. We found few scales that measured peer or community norms.ConclusionValidated scales that encompass views on the acceptance of violence against women, and scales inclusive of beliefs about men’s sexual entitlement, may be particularly promising for unpacking pathways to IPV perpetration, targeting interventions, and monitoring progress in IPV prevention efforts. A number of gaps in the literature are identified.

Power mobility skill progression for children and adolescents: a systematic review of measures and their clinical application.

To identify and critically appraise standardized measures of power mobility skill used with children (18y or younger) with mobility limitations and explore the measures' application for 'exploratory', 'operational', and 'functional' learners. Five electronic databases were searched along with hand-searching for peer-reviewed articles published in English to July 2017 (updated 31st August 2017). Key terms included power(ed) mobility, power(ed) wheelchair, and database-specific terms. Studies included at least one child with a disability, and a detailed description of the measure of power mobility skill. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement was followed with inclusion criteria set a priori. Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts, and full-text articles. Of 96 titles, 24 articles met inclusion criteria, describing nine measures of power mobility skill. The Wheelchair Skills Checklist, the Powered Mobility Program (PMP), and the Power Mobility Training Tool were augmented by three adaptations of the PMP. Two additional measures were further developed to create a third, the Assessment of Learning Powered mobility use. Validity evidence related primarily to content development while reliability evidence was reported on only two measures. All measures are in the initial stages of development and testing. Research investigating the measures' appropriateness for different types of learners and environments is warranted. There are four distinct measures of paediatric power mobility skill: three task-based, one process-based. Power mobility learners may be divided into three groups: exploratory, operational, and functional. Application of measures of power mobility skill differs for these three groups.

Quality and acceptability of measures of exercise adherence in musculoskeletal settings: a systematic review.

Objective. To recommend robust and relevant measures of exercise adherence for application in the musculoskeletal field.Method. A systematic review of measures was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 sought to identify all reproducible measures used to assess exercise adherence in a musculoskeletal setting. Phase 2 identified published evidence of measurement and practical properties of identified measures. Eight databases were searched (from inception to February 2016). Study quality was assessed against the Consensus-based Standards for the Selection of Health Measurement Instruments guidelines. Measurement quality was assessed against accepted standards.Results. Phase 1: from 8511 records, 326 full-text articles were reviewed; 45 reproducible measures were identified. Phase 2: from 2977 records, 110 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility; 10 articles provided evidence of measurement/practical properties for just seven measures. Six were exercise adherence-specific measures; one was specific to physical activity but applied as a measure of exercise adherence. Evidence of essential measurement and practical properties was mostly limited or not available. Assessment of relevance and comprehensiveness was largely absent and there was no evidence of patient involvement during the development or evaluation of any measure.Conclusion. The significant methodological and quality issues encountered prevent the clear recommendation of any measure; future applications should be undertaken cautiously until greater clarity of the conceptual underpinning of each measure is provided and acceptable evidence of essential measurement properties is established. Future research should seek to engage collaboratively with relevant stakeholders to ensure that exercise adherence assessment is high quality, relevant and acceptable.

Measures of upper limb function for people with neck pain: A systematic review of measurement and practical properties

Measures of upper limb function for people with neck pain: A systematic review of measurement and practical properties

Measurement Properties of the Lower Extremity Functional Scale: A Systematic Review.

Systematic review of measurement properties. Many primary studies have examined the measurement properties, such as reliability, validity, and sensitivity to change, of the Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS) in different clinical populations. A systematic review summarizing these properties for the LEFS may provide an important resource. To locate and synthesize evidence on the measurement properties of the LEFS and to discuss the clinical implications of the evidence. A literature search was conducted in 4 databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase, and CINAHL), using predefined search terms. Two reviewers performed a critical appraisal of the included studies using a standardized assessment form. A total of 27 studies were included in the review, of which 18 achieved a very good to excellent methodological quality level. The LEFS scores demonstrated excellent test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficients ranging between 0.85 and 0.99) and demonstrated the expected relationships with measures assessing similar constructs (Pearson correlation coefficient values of greater than 0.7). The responsiveness of the LEFS scores was excellent, as suggested by consistently high effect sizes (greater than 0.8) in patients with different lower extremity conditions. Minimal detectable change at the 90% confidence level (MDC90) for the LEFS scores varied between 8.1 and 15.3 across different reassessment intervals in a wide range of patient populations. The pooled estimate of the MDC90 was 6 points and the minimal clinically important difference was 9 points in patients with lower extremity musculoskeletal conditions, which are indicative of true change and clinically meaningful change, respectively. The results of this review support the reliability, validity, and responsiveness of the LEFS scores for assessing functional impairment in a wide array of patient groups with lower extremity musculoskeletal conditions.

Change in interpersonal functioning during psychological interventions for borderline personality disorder—a systematic review of measures and efficacy.

To provide a systematic review of measures of interpersonal functioning used in treatments for people diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD) and to report the effectiveness of treatments on these measures of interpersonal functioning. Literature was reviewed using the online databases and reference lists of previous systematic reviews. Selected studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that examined psychotherapeutic interventions for people with BPD and contained quantitative outcomes on various aspects of interpersonal functioning and reported their results in peer-reviewed journals. Reliability and validity of the results were evaluated. Nineteen RCTs met our inclusion criteria. We found 16 different (sub)scales that measured some aspect of interpersonal functioning. Only four instruments were used by more than one research team. There is some evidence that psychotherapeutic interventions have beneficial effects on some aspects of interpersonal functioning in people diagnosed with BPD, both after individual and group therapy. Generalizability of these findings is limited. There is preliminary evidence that psychotherapeutic interventions have beneficial effects on various aspects of interpersonal reactivity that characterize people diagnosed with BPD. However, none of these effects have a robust evidence base. There are serious concerns about the lack of agreed-upon concepts and instruments.

Assessment of patient empowerment--a systematic review of measures.

BackgroundPatient empowerment has gained considerable importance but uncertainty remains about the best way to define and measure it. The validity of empirical findings depends on the quality of measures used. This systematic review aims to provide an overview of studies assessing psychometric properties of questionnaires purporting to capture patient empowerment, evaluate the methodological quality of these studies and assess the psychometric properties of measures identified.MethodsElectronic searches in five databases were combined with reference tracking of included articles. Peer-reviewed articles reporting psychometric testing of empowerment measures for adult patients in French, German, English, Portuguese and Spanish were included. Study characteristics, constructs operationalised and psychometric properties were extracted. The quality of study design, methods and reporting was assessed using the COSMIN checklist. The quality of psychometric properties was assessed using Terwee’s 2007 criteria.Findings30 studies on 19 measures were included. Six measures are generic, while 13 were developed for a specific condition (N=4) or specialty (N=9). Most studies tested measures in English (N=17) or Swedish (N=6). Sample sizes of included studies varied from N=35 to N=8261. A range of patient empowerment constructs was operationalised in included measures. These were classified into four domains: patient states, experiences and capacities; patient actions and behaviours; patient self-determination within the healthcare relationship and patient skills development. Quality assessment revealed several flaws in methodological study quality with COSMIN scores mainly fair or poor. The overall quality of psychometric properties of included measures was intermediate to positive. Certain psychometric properties were not tested for most measures.DiscussionFindings provide a basis from which to develop consensus on a core set of patient empowerment constructs and for further work to develop a (set of) appropriately validated measure(s) to capture this. The methodological quality of psychometric studies could be improved by adhering to published quality criteria.

Measures of upper limb function for people with neck pain: a systematic review of measurement and practical properties (protocol)

BackgroundUpper limb disability is a common musculoskeletal condition frequently associated with neck pain. Recent literature has reported the need to utilise validated upper limb outcome measures in the assessment and management of patients with neck pain. However, there is a lack of clear guidance about the suitability of available measures, which may impede utilisation. This review will identify all available measures of upper limb function developed for use in neck pain patients and evaluate their measurement and practical properties in order to identify those measures that are most appropriate for use in clinical practice and research.Methods/designThis review will be performed in two phases. Phase one will identify all measures used to assess upper limb function for patients with neck pain. Phase two will identify all available studies of the measurement and practical properties of identified instrument. The COnsensus-based Standards for selection of health Measurement INstrument (COSMIN) will be used to evaluate the methodological quality of the included studies. To ensure methodological rigour, the findings of this review will be reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guideline.DiscussionOptimal management of patients with neck pain should incorporate upper limb rehabilitation. The findings of this study will assist clinicians who seek to utilise suitable and accurate measures to assess upper limb function for a patient with neck pain. In addition, the findings of this study may suggest new research directions to support the development of upper limb outcome measures for patients with neck pain.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42015016624

Assessment of trust in physician: a systematic review of measures.

Over the last decades, trust in physician has gained in importance. Studies have shown that trust in physician is associated with positive health behaviors in patients. However, the validity of empirical findings fundamentally depends on the quality of the measures in use. Our aim was to provide an overview of trust in physician measures and to evaluate the methodological quality of the psychometric studies and the quality of psychometric properties of identified measures. We conducted an electronic search in three databases (Medline, EMBASE and PsycInfo). The secondary search strategy included reference and citation tracking of included full texts and consultation of experts in the field. Retrieved records were screened independently by two reviewers. Full texts that reported on testing of psychometric properties of trust in physician measures were included in the review. Study characteristics and psychometric properties were extracted. We evaluated the quality of design, methods and reporting of studies with the COnsensus based Standards for the selection of health status Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) checklist. The quality of psychometric properties was assessed with Terwee’s 2007 quality criteria. After screening 3284 records and assessing 169 full texts for eligibility, fourteen studies on seven trust in physician measures were included. Most of the studies were conducted in the USA and used English measures. All but one measure were generic. Sample sizes range from 25 to 1199 participants, recruited in very heterogeneous settings. Quality assessments revealed several flaws in the methodological quality of studies. COSMIN scores were mainly fair or poor. The overall quality of measures’ psychometric properties was intermediate. Several trust in physician measures have been developed over the last years, but further psychometric evaluation of these measures is strongly recommended. The methodological quality of psychometric property studies could be improved by adhering to quality criteria like the COSMIN checklist.