New clinical end points in rehabilitation medicine: tools for measuring quality of life.
Traditional clinical end points in rehabilitation medicine have centered on objective measures of human performance, including quantitative muscle strength testing, functional independence measurements (FIM), and timed motor performance (TMP). However, it is now increasingly recognized that health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is a valid clinical end point. Health-related quality of life is a broad concept involving an individual's physical health, psychological state, personal beliefs, and interpersonal and social support relationships. The goals for this article are to show the value of performing HRQoL measurements and briefly describe methods used to assess quality of life (QoL).
Abresch
Richard T
RT
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of California at Davis, Sacramento, CA 95616, USA. tabresch@ucdavis.edu
Carter
Gregory T
GT
Han
Jay J
JJ
McDonald
Craig M
CM
D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care / Q000592:standards; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012046:Rehabilitation / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D016896:Treatment Outcome