Measurement tools, such as patient reported outcome (PRO) measurement questionnaires, are essential in enabling stake holders to assess and determine if a patient’s problem is changing or not. For therapists, medical practitioners, and surgeons it is important to see that the intervention provided has enabled the individual to show improvement. You can’t just say or ask the patient, ”are you better?” They often reply, “yes” just to keep the treater happy. By recording change using PROs, it allows the practitioner to determine how the patient/client is doing both accurately and quantitatively. This is important for all parties (insurance, patients, therapists, and researchers). They can determine if different types of treatments are being effective or as effective as others. Without accurate measurement, the effectiveness of treatment and interventions cannot be established therefore, justification of treatment provision becomes ‘opinion based’.
By contrast, for patients with progressively degrading conditions such as degenerative discs, arthritis, and some oncology patients, these tools can help determine how they are doing in terms of their ability to maintain themselves and minimise their inevitable rate of regression. Outcome measures in this context enable action oriented decision supports to help decide when the step to the next stage of management should occur. It can confirm regression or worsening of symptoms and the need for change in management of their condition, be it medical, physical, or considering moving to the surgical approach. With each new stage of management the outcome measurement process is able to justify this decision and determine the effectiveness of the new strategy. Two simple examples of this can be seen within the case examples of Low Back Pain and post op shoulder management here.
Here is a great list of hundreds of PROs for you to utilize in your clinics.
If you have any questions please email me.
Philip Gabel
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