A simple instrument for assessing stress in clinical practice

Area of Science:

• Psychosomatic Medicine
• Clinical Psychology
• Medical Sociology

Background:

• Assessing psychosocial factors in patients with medical conditions is complex and challenging for clinical practice.
• Existing methods often require specialized training and are time-consuming.
• There is a need for a concise and user-friendly tool for busy clinical settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a short, easy-to-use index for assessing psychosocial factors in patients.
• To create a tool that provides adequate individual information for clinical decision-making.
• To facilitate psychosomatic research and clinical practice.

Main Methods:

• Development of the Psychosocial Index, drawing from established instruments like Kellner's Screening List.
• Inclusion of patient self-report items and clinician ratings of stress, wellbeing, psychological distress, and illness behavior.
• Validation study involving 34 female patients with functional medical disorders, rated by an internist and a psychiatrist.

Main Results:

• Excellent agreement between the internist and psychiatrist ratings, as indicated by the intraclass correlation coefficient.
• The Psychosocial Index demonstrated reliability in assessing key psychosocial dimensions.
• The tool proved feasible for use in a clinical setting.

Conclusions:

• The Psychosocial Index is a promising new tool for assessing psychosocial factors in patients with medical conditions.
• Its ease of use and reliability make it suitable for busy clinical environments.
• The index has the potential to enhance psychosomatic research and patient care.