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Using the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) among Older Adult Inpatients with Varying Cognitive Function

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Abstract

Background: High rates of missing, non-applicable items and insufficient reliability have been frequently reported as limitations of the generic Quality of Life questionnaires for older patients. The Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) might be more suitable as it contains easy to respond (yes/no) items covering moderate-to-severe health deterioration. Objectives: To assess feasibility, reliability and validity of the NHP in disabled, older patients. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Acute care hospital. Subjects: 134 inpatients aged ≥65 with severe disability, abnormal cognitive function, or other persistent health problems precluding their discharge. Methods: The (interviewer-administered) NHP, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Barthel Index, and diagnostic information were recorded. Results: Completion rates varied from 98% of the 49 patients with normal cognition (MMSE ≥21) and 86.3% of the 51 with moderate cognitive impairment (MMSE 10–20), to 5.9% of the 34 with severe cognitive impairment (MMSE<10). Cronbach’s alpha of the total NHP score was near 0.9 (0.82 and 0.87 for patients with MMSE ≥ 21 and 10–20, respectively; p = 0.291). The correlation between ‘Physical Mobility’ of the NHP and Barthel Index was also similar in both cognitive groups (0.39 and 0.40). Conclusion: Interviewer-administered NHP is suitable, reliable and valid, even in patients with moderate cognitive function.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Health Services Research Unit, Institut Municipal d’Investigació Mèdica, IMIM-IMAS, C/Doctor Aiguader, 80, Barcelona, 8003, Spain

    Eva Baró, Montse Ferrer, Angels Pont & Jordi Alonso

  2. Health Outcomes Research Department, 3D Health Research, Barcelona, Spain

    Eva Baró

  3. Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Eva Baró, Ramón Miralles & Jordi Alonso

  4. Geriatric Department of the Centro Geriátrico Municipal–Hospital de la Esperanza–Hospital del Mar, Instituto de Atención Geriátrica y Sociosanitaria (IAGS) IMAS, Barcelona, Spain

    Olga Vázquez, Ramón Miralles, Asunción Esperanza & Antoni Ma Cervera

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  1. Eva Baró
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  2. Montse Ferrer
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Correspondence to Montse Ferrer.

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Baró, E., Ferrer, M., Vázquez, O. et al. Using the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) among Older Adult Inpatients with Varying Cognitive Function. Qual Life Res 15, 575–585 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-005-3691-0

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