Interview Functional Independence Measure score: self-reporting as a simpler alternative to multidisciplinary...

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Neuroscience
• Clinical Assessment

Background:

• The Functional Independence Measure (FIM) is a standard tool for assessing functional status in rehabilitation.
• Practical constraints may limit the use of comprehensive FIM assessments.
• Previous studies showed mixed agreement for self-reported FIM scores in spinal cord injury and amputee populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the validity of self-reported FIM motor scores in stroke patients.
• To compare patient self-assessment with multidisciplinary team evaluations.

Main Methods:

• A prospective, double-blind, comparative study design was employed.
• 47 eligible stroke patients were initially included, with 33 in the final analysis.
• Patient self-reporting was compared against the standard FIM algorithm used by a multidisciplinary team.

Main Results:

• Substantial agreement was found for the overall FIM motor score (ICC = 0.651).
• Fair-to-good agreement was observed for most individual motor items (ICC range 0.431–0.618).
• Lower agreement was noted for specific items like eating, grooming, bathing, and lower body dressing (ICC < 0.400).

Conclusions:

• Self-reported FIM motor scores demonstrated a modest agreement with multidisciplinary assessments in stroke survivors.
• Self-reporting may be a viable alternative when comprehensive FIM assessment is challenging.
• Limitations include potential patient overestimation and inapplicability to those with cognitive or communication deficits.