title: A brief outpatient functional assessment measure: validity using Rasch measures.
abstract: The Medical Rehabilitation Follow Along (MRFA(TM)) is a brief outpatient functional assessment measure that was developed using Rasch analysis. The MRFA currently has musculoskeletal, neurologic, multiple sclerosis, cardiac, and pulmonary forms. Using Rasch scoring and selected scales, the 31-item musculoskeletal form of the MRFA was compared with and contrasted to a measure of general health status, the Medical Outcomes Trust SF-36. Content, construct, and criterion validity were addressed using scale scores before and after outpatient rehabilitation, as well as therapist ratings of improvement. The results supported the validity of inferences made from the MRFA scales using Rasch measures for persons with musculoskeletal problems. Rasch and raw scoring provided similar results with respect to the validity of the MRFA scales. Implications for the use of Rasch and raw scoring approaches with the MRFA are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Center for Functional Assessment Research, State University of New York at Buffalo 14214, USA.
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Baker
authors.forename: C V
authors.initials: CV
authors.lastname: Granger
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Fiedler
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires