title: Physiotherapists have accurate expectations of their patients' future health-related quality of life after first assessment in a subacute rehabilitation setting.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Expectations held by health professionals and their patients are likely to affect treatment choices in subacute inpatient rehabilitation settings for older adults. There is a scarcity of empirical evidence evaluating whether health professionals expectations of the quality of their patients' future health states are accurate.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective longitudinal cohort investigation was implemented to examine agreement (kappa coefficients, exact agreement, limits-of-agreement, and intraclass-correlation coefficients) between physiotherapists' (n = 23) prediction of patients' discharge health-related quality of life (reported on the EQ-5D-3L) and the actual health-related quality of life self-reported by patients (n = 272) at their discharge assessment (using the EQ-5D-3L). The mini-mental state examination was used as an indicator of patients' cognitive ability.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 232 (85%) patients had all assessment data completed and were included in analysis. Kappa coefficients (exact agreement) ranged between 0.37-0.57 (58%-83%) across EQ-5D-3L domains in the lower cognition group and 0.53-0.68 (81%-85%) in the better cognition group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Physiotherapists in this subacute rehabilitation setting predicted their patients' discharge health-related quality of life with substantial accuracy. Physiotherapists are likely able to provide their patients with sound information regarding potential recovery and health-related quality of life on discharge. The prediction accuracy was higher among patients with better cognition than patients with poorer cognition.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Functioning and Health Research, Buranda Plaza Corner Ipswich Road and Cornwall Street, Buranda, QLD, Australia ; School of Public Health and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, QLD, Australia.
authors.forename: Steven M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: McPhail
authors.affiliation: Centre for Functioning and Health Research, Buranda Plaza Corner Ipswich Road and Cornwall Street, Buranda, QLD, Australia ; School of Public Health and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, QLD, Australia ; Rotman Research Institute, Bathurst Street, Baycrest, Toronto, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Nalder
authors.affiliation: School of Physiotherapy, the University of Notre Dame Australia, Mouat Street, Fremantle, WA, Australia.
authors.forename: Anne-Marie
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.affiliation: Southern Health, Allied Health Research Unit, Kingston Centre, Cnr Warrigal and Kingston Roads, Cheltenham, VIC, Australia ; Physiotherapy Department, School of Primary Health Care, Monash University, Monash University Peninsular Campus, VIC, Australia.
authors.forename: Terry P
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Haines
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D059825:Physical Therapists; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D012046:Rehabilitation