Development and validation of a questionnaire assessing disease knowledge and self-care (ARKSc) level among allergic rhinitis patients.

INTRODUCTION

Understanding a patient's knowledge and selfcare level regarding allergic rhinitis (AR) is essential these factors significantly influence treatment outcomes. Currently, there is a lack of validated measurement tools specifically designed to assess disease knowledge and selfcare among patients with AR. Therefore, this study aimed to develop and validate a new questionnaire - the Allergic Rhinitis Knowledge and Self-care (ARKSc) questionnairefor this purpose.

MATERIAL AND

METHODS

A questionnaire development and validation study was conducted in two phase. The first phase involved developing a self-administered questionnaire through literature review and consultations with an expert panel. Content validation was evaluated by a group of content experts using the content validity index (CVI), while face validity was assessed by AR patients using the Face Validity Index (FVI). In the second phase, construct validity of the final ARKSc questionnaire was examined at Hospital Sultan Abdul Halim, Kedah, Malaysia and Universiti Sains Malaysia Specialist Hospital (HPUSM), Kelantan, Malaysia involving 136 AR patients. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and reliability analysis were performed to assess the factorial structure and internal consistency of the questionnaire.

RESULTS

The preliminary questionnaire included 16 questions (22 items) assessing AR knowledge and 11 questions on self-care. During content validation, three items with low item-CVI (I-CVI) score were removed. The average Scale-CVI (S-CVI/Ave) for both knowledge and selfcare domains was 0.83. The scale-level face validity index value (S-FVI/Ave) 0.95, indicating excellent clarity and comprehensibility. Following construct validation, the final version of questionnaire consisted of 11 items in the knowledge section and 4 items in self-care section. The Cronbach's alpha was 0.659 for the knowledge section, and 0.663 for the self-care section, reflecting acceptable internal consistency.

CONCLUSION

The newly developed and validated ARKSc questionnaire is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing disease knowledge and self-care among patients with allergic rhinitis. This study provides a foundation for future development of more refined tools and underscores the importance of evaluating these domains to enhance disease management and patient outcomes.