The health diary as a source of information on kibbutz morbidity

This study explores the use of health diaries as a source of information of general morbidity and health behavior among kibbutz residents. Two diary formats were randomly assigned to 76 families. Diary I (HDI) required daily responses concerning all health events for each family, even if no events occurred. Health diary II (HDII) required responses only on those days when health events occurred. The results were compared with the kibbutz clinic records. The compliance rate in this study was 72%. HDI demonstrated a high symptom-reporting rate compared with other populations studied. HDI families made an average of 4.5 visits to physicians and 9.7 to nurses during the year. HDI showed a higher validity than HDII. The advantage of the health diary lies primarily in its sensitivity to symptoms. Criterion validity, measured in terms of sensitivity, indicated that HDI was more than three times more sensitive than the nurse's log, but about equally sensitive as the physician's records.