Creation and Validation of the Select Medical Patient Reported Experience Measure for Physical and Occupational Therapy Outpatient Clinics

Abstract

Objective: This study describes the creation and examination of the internal consistency, content validity, construct/structural validity, and criterion/concurrent validity of the Select Medical Patient Reported Experience Measure (SM-PREM).

Design: Observational study design.

Setting: 1054 Outpatient physical and occupational therapy locations in North America.

Participants: The study included 89,205 patients with various musculoskeletal disorders (N=89,205).

Intervention: Not applicable.

Main outcome measures: Content validity was described, and internal consistency, construct/structural validity (factor analysis), and criterion/concurrent validity were analyzed, with concurrent validity compared against patient reported outcomes (PROM), the Net Promoter Scale, and the Orebro Musculoskeletal Screening Questionnaire-12.

Results: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis of the SM-PREM yielded 3 dimensions, each with a very strong internal consistency (>.850). The SM-PREM yielded statistically significant results in all areas, with values that reflected minimal to fair association with PROMs.

Conclusion: The SM-PREM appears to capture a unique construct compared to PROMs. The 11-item tool has 3 definitive dimensions and exhibits strong internal consistency. The tool may be useful in examining patient experience in patients with musculoskeletal injuries seen by physical and occupational therapists.

Keywords: Low back pain; Lower extremity; Neck pain; Patient experience measures; Rehabilitation; Upper extremity.