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Validity of the functional independence measure for persons with traumatic brain injury
J D Corrigan1, K Smith-Knapp, C V Granger
1Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA.
Objective:
Replicate and extend studies of the construct validity of the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) for persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI).
Design:
A cross-sectional study of admissions to acute rehabilitation evaluated 6 months to 5 years after discharge.
Setting:
An inpatient brain injury rehabilitation unit in a large, academic medical center.
Subjects:
Ninety-five patients with primary diagnosis of TBI stratified by time postdischarge.
Main Outcome Measures:
Prediction of (1) average daily minutes of assistance and (2) supervision required in comparison to the Sickness Impact Profile (SIP) and SF-36.
Results:
The FIM was highly predictive of minutes of assistance (83% accuracy), supervision (82% accuracy), and the need for either type of assistance (78% accuracy). Prediction was only minimally improved by measures of neurobehavioral impairment. The accuracy of the FIM was superior to the SIP and SF-36.
Conclusions:
Results provided substantial support for the validity of the FIM as a measure of functional independence for persons with TBI. The importance of supervision as a type of assistance required after TBI was evident, with the FIM highly predictive of this need, as well.