Diseño y validación del Índice de Evaluación de Casos Complejos (IECC), un instrumento para identificar pacientes complejos / Design and validation of the Complex Case Evaluation Index, an instrument to identify complex patients

Fundamento: Desarrollar y validar un instrumento específico de identificación de pacientes complejos, elÍndice de Evaluación de Casos Complejos (IECC). Métodos: Estudio instrumental con dos fases: 1) Elaboración del instrumento: se definieron y operacionalizaronlas variables extraídas de la literatura que, posteriormente, fueron sometidas al juicio de expertos. El IECCincluyó catorce variables divididas en dos dimensiones:complejidad del manejo clínico y complejidad del manejo comunitario. 2) Estudio psicométrico: evaluaciónde la fiabilidad por equivalencia entre observadores (rPearson), de la validez de criterio respecto al sistema declasificación Clinical Risk Groups (CRG) y de la validezde constructo a través de grupos conocidos y a travésdel estudio de conglomerados jerárquicos. Los análisisse realizaron con el paquete estadístico SPSS.v.17. Resultados: La fiabilidad entre observadores para lasubescala clínica fue r = 0,97, para la subescala comunitaria r = 0,74 y para la puntuación total r = 0,89. El 88,4%(n = 458) de los 518 casos identificados como complejospor el IECC fueron categorizados por el sistema CRG enlas categorías de más complejidad clínica (niveles 6 a9). Los resultados sustentan la validez de constructode la escala. El análisis de conglomerados mostró dosclusters diferentes, aunque relacionados. Conclusión: El IECC es un índice breve y de fácil aplicación, con una buena adecuación conceptual y evidencias de su fiabilidad y validez dirigido a la detección depacientes con necesidades complejas.(AU)

Background: The aim was to develop and validate theComplex Case Assessment Index (CCAI), a specific instrument to identify complex patients. Methods: Instrumental study in two phases: 1) Development of the scale: the variables extracted from theliterature were firstly defined and operationalized, andthen submitted for expert judgment. The CCAI included14 variables divided into two dimensions: complexity ofclinical management and complexity of community management. 2) Psychometric study: evaluation of the reliability and validity of the scale by equivalence betweenobservers (Pearson’s r), criterion validity with respect tothe Clinical Risk Groups (CRG) classification system, andconstruct validity through known groups and study ofhierarchical clusters were examined. The analyses werecarried out with the SPSS version 17 statistical package. Results: Reliability by equivalence between observers was r = 0.97 for the clinical subscale, r = 0.74 for thecommunity subscale, and r = 0.89 for the total score.The CCAI identified 518 cases as complex; 458 of them(88.4%) were categorized by the CRG system in the categories of greatest clinical complexity (levels 6 to 9).The results support the construct validity of the scale.The cluster analysis showed two different, although related, clusters. Conclusion: The CCAI is a fast and easy-to-use index,with good conceptual adequacy and evidence of reliability and validity for screening patients with complexneeds.(AU)

[Design and validation of a complex case evaluation index].

BACKGROUND: The aim was to develop and validate the Complex Case Assessment Index (CCAI), a specific instrument to identify complex patients. METHODS: Instrumental study in two phases: 1) Development of the scale: the variables extracted from the literature were firstly defined and operationalized, and then submitted for expert judgment. The CCAI included 14 variables divided into two dimensions: complexity of clinical management and complexity of community management. 2) Psychometric study: evaluation of the reliability and validity of the scale by equivalence between observers (Pearson's r), criterion validity with respect to the Clinical Risk Groups (CRG) classification system, and construct validity through known groups and study of hierarchical clusters were examined. The analyses were carried out with the SPSS version 17 statistical package. RESULTS: Reliability by equivalence between observers was r?=?0.97 for the clinical subscale, r?=?0.74 for the community subscale, and r?=?0.89 for the total score. The CCAI identified 518 cases as complex; 458 of them (88.4%) were categorized by the CRG system in the categories of greatest clinical complexity (levels 6 to 9). The results support the construct validi-ty of the scale. The cluster analysis showed two different, although related, clusters. CONCLUSION: The CCAI is a fast and easy-to-use index, with good conceptual adequacy and evidence of reliability and validity for screening patients with complex needs.

[Place of death of people with conditions needing palliative care in the different regions of Spain]. / Lugar de fallecimiento de las personas con enfermedades susceptibles de cuidados paliativos en las diferentes comunidades autónomas de España.

BACKGROUND: Dying at home is the most frequent preference, with the institutionalized context being the most common place of death. To determine the place of death in conditions requiring palliative care of residents in Spain aged 15 or over by Autonomous Community (AC) and to examine the relationship with oncological vs. non-oncological causes of death. METHODS: Population-based cross-sectional study analysing medical death certificates. Adjusted effects of socio-demographic variables, AC and causes on the place of death were estimated calculating odds of death in hospital vs. at home (O-H/H) and in a nursing home vs. at home (O-N/H), and odds ratio (OR-H/H and OR-N/H) by multinomial logistic regression models. RESULTS: During 2012-2015, 1,611,767 deaths were recorded, 64.8% corresponding to the target population. Death in hospital was 77% more frequent than death at home, while death in a nursing home was 53% lower. Male sex, lower age, lower academic level, place of birth other than Spain, bigger city size and civil status other than married displayed a relationship with death in hospital, while the same variables except female sex and higher age did so in a nursing home. Adjusted O-H/H higher than 1 and O-N/H lower than 1 were observed in all AC, except Catalonia. Oncological causes made O-H/H lower than 1 in almost 50% of AC, while O-N/H continue to be lower than 1. CONCLUSIONS: Most deaths were in hospital and fewer at nursing homes, despite oncological causes increasing deaths at home (adjusted effect).

Evaluation of Mediterranean diet adherence scores: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this review was to evaluate the conceptual suitability, applicability and psychometric properties of scores used internationally to measure adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD). DESIGN: This was a systematic review to identify original articles that examined some aspects of the conceptual suitability, applicability or psychometric properties of the MD adherence score. Electronic searches were carried out on the international databases MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science and EMBASE (from January 1980 to 31 December 2015). ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTING STUDIES: The study included original articles that examined some aspects of the conceptual suitability, applicability or psychometric properties of the MD adherence score. The studies where MD adherence scores were administered but did not bring forward any evidence about their performance related to conceptual suitability, applicability or psychometric properties were excluded. DATA EXTRACTION: Information relating to the scales was extracted in accordance with the quality criteria defined by the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Medical Outcomes Trust for measurement of health results and the quality criteria recommended by Terwee: (1) conceptual, (2) applicability and (3) psychometric properties. Three authors independently extracted information from eligible studies. RESULTS: Twenty-seven studies were identified as meeting the inclusion criteria, yielding 28 MD adherence scores. The results showed that evidence is scarce and that very few scores fulfilled the applicability parameters and psychometric quality. The scores developed by Panagiotakos et al, Buckland et al and Sotos-Prieto et al showed the highest levels of evidence. CONCLUSIONS: Scores measuring adherence to MD are useful tools for identifying the dietary patterns of a given population. However, further information is required regarding existing scores. In addition, new instruments with greater conceptual and methodological rigour should be developed and evaluated for their psychometric properties.

Relationship between Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Health-Related Quality of Life and Life Satisfaction among Older Adults.

OBJECTIVES: Evaluate the relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and health-related quality of life and degree of life satisfaction among older adults. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional descriptive study. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 351 people older than 60 years participated in the study. MEASUREMENTS: The Mediterranean Diet Score (MDS) was calculated to assess the degree of adherence to the MD. MD adherence was related to health-related quality of life using the Short Form Healthy Survey (SF-12) questionnaire, to life satisfaction using the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), and to sociodemographic, clinical and lifestyle variables. Multiple logistic regression models were used to analyse this relationship. RESULTS: Mediterranean diet adherence was related to health- related quality of life. Participants with better adherence to the MD were more physically active (p=0.01) and had better health-related quality of life (p<0.05) and lower consumption of alcoholic beverages (p=0.04). The age-adjusted model showed a significant association between the MD and mental function for both sexes and with physical function only for men. The fully adjusted model showed a direct relationship between the MD and life satisfaction of women (p>0.05) but not for that of men (p=0.31). CONCLUSIONS: The adherence to the MD is directly associated with the self-perceived physical and mental function of both sexes and with the life satisfaction of women. Further studies in older adult populations should be performed to obtain conclusive results on the MD effect on health-related quality of life, including wellness indicators.

Revisión de los atributos de las medidas de resultados de salud basados en el paciente / Review of the attributes of patient-based health outcomes instruments

El estudio de la calidad y uso de instrumentos de medición de resultados de salud basados en el paciente ha sido y es un campo de interés incipiente para muchas disciplinas sanitarias, entre ellas la enfermería. En los últimos 30 años se ha multiplicado el número de instrumentos de medición, y se ha observado una enorme disparidad en sus contenidos, lo que dificulta la selección de uno de ellos para su uso en la clínica o en la investigación. El objetivo de este artículo es presentar los atributos que deben reunir los instrumentos de salud basados en el paciente antes de ser utilizados. Para ello, se presentan con detalle los atributos que, al respecto, se han consensuado, tanto en el ámbito nacional como internacional, agrupándolos en 3 grandes ejes: adecuación conceptual, aplicabilidad y propiedades psicométricas (AU)

Study of the quality and use of patient-based outcomes instruments has been and still is an area of growing interest inmany health disciplines, including nursing. In the last 30 years, the number of measures has greatly increased. However, there is enormous disparity in their contents, hampering selection of one or other of these instruments for use in clinical medicine or research. The aim of this article was to describe the quality attributes that patient-basedhealth instruments should meet before being used. For that purpose, we provide a detailed description of the attributes on which there is both national and international consensus. These instruments are grouped in 3 main axes: conceptual adequacy, applicability, and psychometric properties (AU)