title: Measuring perceived health outcomes in non-western culture: does SF-36 have a place?
abstract: This study explored the usefulness of a generic health assessment tool SF-36 in measuring perceived health outcomes in a developing-country setting. The adapted Bangla version was administered in 10 villages of Matlab sub-district in Bangladesh during second half of 1999. Respondents included currently-married males and females selected randomly from households stratified according to their association with women-focused development interventions of BRAC. Findings revealed that the respondents from BRAC households perceived their health status marginally better than the poor non-member group in most domains studied, sometimes significantly so, e.g. general and mental health (p < 0.05). The respondents from BRAC reported better 'current health' than their non-member counterparts. The gender difference in assessment of health status was noted among the groups. Age, education, and poverty were important determinants of perceived health status. SF-36 proved to be a useful tool for self-assessment of health status and group comparison when properly modified for cross-cultural adaptation.
authors.affiliation: Research and Evaluation Division, BRAC, BRAC Centre, 75 Mohakhali, Dhaka 1212, Bangladesh. ahmed.sm@brac.net
authors.forename: Syed Masud
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Ahmed
authors.forename: A K M Masud
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Rana
authors.forename: Mushtaque
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chowdhury
authors.forename: Abbas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bhuiya
mesh_terms: D001459:Bangladesh / Q000453:epidemiology; D003906:Developing Countries; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012423:Rural Health / Q000145:classification* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D020377:Self Efficacy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States