Providing Functional Communication Test for Persian Patients and Determining Its Validity and Reliability

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Speech-Language Pathology
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• The International Classification of Impairment, Disabilities and Health (ICIDH) shifted focus towards functional participation in daily life for individuals with acquired brain injuries (ABI).
• Accurate assessment of functional communication is crucial for developing effective rehabilitation plans for ABI patients.
• A significant gap exists in validated communication assessment tools for Persian-speaking ABI populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a Functional Communication Test for Persian-speaking patients with ABI.
• To measure communication strengths and weaknesses in dementia-free ABI patients.
• To provide a culturally and linguistically appropriate assessment tool.

Main Methods:

• The Persian Functional Communication Test (P-FUCT) was designed based on established international functional communication assessments.
• Content validity ratio (CVR) was determined for the initial version.
• The P-FUCT was administered to 30 dementia-free ABI patients by clinicians and caregivers, with concurrent validity assessed using the P-WAB-1.

Main Results:

• The P-FUCT demonstrated excellent internal consistency (alpha = 0.96), inter-rater reliability (0.91), and intra-rater reliability (0.95).
• Adequate content validity was confirmed with a CVR of 0.71.
• Strong correlations were found between P-FUCT scores and P-WAB-1 scores (r=0.79 clinician, r=0.80 caregiver).

Conclusions:

• The Persian Functional Communication Test (P-FUCT) is a valid and reliable instrument.
• P-FUCT can effectively measure the functional communication abilities of dementia-free ABI patients.
• This tool addresses a critical need for Persian-speaking individuals with ABI.