Reliability and validity of an occupational health history questionnaire

This study determined the reliability and validity of a self-administered occupational health history questionnaire. Reliability was evaluated using a test-retest study design based on 123 volunteers (56% participation rate) who were administered the questionnaire approximately 1 month apart. Validity and general acceptability was evaluated in a clinical setting through in-depth clinician interviews of 25 patients. The interviews assessed patients' understanding of and sensitivities to questions and degree of adherence to initial responses after discussing questions with clinicians. All but one question related to repetitive motion exposures showed 84% or higher agreement. Clinician interviews of patients indicated that most questions were well understood, although some patients misinterpreted questions regarding pregnancy history, repetitive motion, and immunization history. Overall, our results suggest that the questionnaire is highly reliable, valid, and acceptable to both clinicians and employees.