Measurement of overall quality of life in nursing homes through self-report: the role of cognitive impairment.
Measuring quality of life is a necessity for adequate interventions. This paper concerns the usefulness of six self-report measures for overall quality of life for nursing home residents with various levels of cognitive impairment. It was investigated which proportion of residents from four cognition groups could complete a scale, and internal consistency and construct validity of the scales were studied. Data collection took place in ten Dutch nursing homes (N = 227). The proportion of residents that could complete each scale varied. The Depression List could be administered most often to the cognitively most impaired group (43%; Mini Mental State Examination-scores 0-4). In the three cognition groups with MMSE-score >5, internal consistency of the Depression List, Geriatric Depression Scale and Negative Affect Scale was adequate in all three groups (alpha > or =.68). Intercorrelation was highest for the Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale, the Depression List, and the Geriatric Depression Scale (rho > or =.65). Nonetheless, self-report scales were not strongly correlated with two observational scales for depression, especially in cognitively severely impaired residents (rho < or =.30). In conclusion, it may not be possible to measure overall quality of life through self-report, and possibly also through observation, in many nursing home residents.
Gerritsen
Debby Lydia
DL
Heyendaal Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, PO Box 9103, 6500 HD Nijmegen, The Netherlands. d.gerritsen@hin.ru.nl
Steverink
Nardi
N
Ooms
Marcel E
ME
de Vet
Henrica C W
HC
Ribbe
Miel W
MW
D000339:Affect; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001519:Behavior; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006707:Homes for the Aged / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care / Q000523:psychology* / Q000592:standards; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009013:Morale; D009426:Netherlands; D009735:Nursing Homes / Q000592:standards*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile