title: The World Health Organization Short Disability Assessment Schedule (WHO DAS-S): a tool for the assessment of difficulties in selected areas of functioning of patients with mental disorders.
abstract: The World Health Organization Short Disability Assessment Schedule (WHO DAS-S) is an instrument for clinicians' assessment and rating of difficulties in maintaining personal care, in performing occupational tasks and in functioning in relation to the family and the broader social context due to mental disorders. The WHO DAS-S was developed and underwent preliminarily testing in the context of two international field trials of the multiaxial presentation of ICD-10 for use in adult psychiatry. The instrument was found to be useful, user-friendly and reasonably reliable for use by clinicians belonging to different schools of psychiatry and psychiatric traditions. Further work on the WHO DAS-S should include development of national adaptations of the instrument, studies of concurrent validity of the instrument and modification of the instrument to accommodate changes in the next edition of the International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps (ICIDH).
authors.affiliation: Division of Mental Health and Prevention of Substance Abuse, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Janca
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kastrup
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Katschnig
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: López-Ibor
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Mezzich
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sartorius
mesh_terms: D004185:Disability Evaluation; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014944:World Health Organization