Psychometric properties of the Swedish versions of Spinal Cord Independence Measure IV (SCIM IV) and Self-report (SCIM-SR) in inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation settings

Study design : Psychometric study. Objectives : To evaluate the data completeness, targeting, internal consistency reliability and convergent validity of the Swedish versions of the Spinal Cord Independence Measure IV (s-SCIM IV) and the Spinal Cord Independence Measure Self-report (s-SCIM-SR). Setting: Inpatient and outpatient spinal cord injury (SCI) rehabilitation in Sweden. Methods: In total, 101 participants (82% men) were included. The translation process was based on established guidelines and involved researchers, clinicians and consumers. s-SCIM IV and FIM ^TM assessments were performed by observation and/or interview. Data for s-SCIM-SR were collected through self-report using paper forms. Results: There were no missing data for the s-SCIM IV and 92% had answered all items in the s-SCIM-SR. No ceiling or floor effects were observed. Cronbach´s alpha for the total s-SCIM IV scale was 0.91 (subscales 0.68–0.93) and for the total s-SCIM-SR scale 0.91 (subscales 0.62-0.93), with the lowest alphas for the subscale Respiration and Sphincter management in both outcome measures. The s-SCIM IV and s-SCIM-SR correlated strongly with each other and with FIM ^TM . Conclusions: Our results support the data completeness, targeting, internal consistency reliability and convergent validity of the s-SCIM IV and s-SCIM-SR. These outcome measures can thus be considered suitable to assess physical independence in inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation and long-term follow-up after SCI, for both clinical and research purposes. The available and psychometrically sound Swedish versions will now enable a uniform national assessment of SCI-specific physical independence and facilitate research and international collaborations and comparisons. Sponsorship : Not applicable