Concurrent validity and reliability of a telehealth-based administration of the Craig Hospital Inventory of Environmental Factors in people with rheumatoid arthritis.

INTRODUCTION

Telephone-based application of questionnaires may be valuable and cost-effective approaches for remote evaluation of patients.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to examine the concurrent validity of the telephone-based application of the Craig Hospital Inventory of Environmental Factors (CHIEF) in comparison with in-person application, and its measurement properties, in people with rheumatoid arthritis.

METHODS

A methodological study was conducted. Participants were requested to answer the questionnaire on four randomized occasions: three times by telephone, and once in-person. Concurrent validity, test-retest, and inter-rater reliability of the telephone-based application of the CHIEF were reported.

RESULTS

Sixty participants (52 women) chronically diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis were included. There were no significant differences between the mean scores obtained by telephone- and in-person applications of the CHIEF (MD 3; 95% CI -4 to 9; p=0.38). Overall, a high agreement was found (ICC=0.83; 95% CI 0.72 to 0.90). A very high test-retest agreement (ICC=0.99; 95% CI 0.98 to 0.99) and a high inter-rater agreement (ICC=0.88; 95% CI 0.78 to 0.93) of the total scores obtained by telephone applications was found.

CONCLUSION

In people with rheumatoid arthritis, the results suggested that there is no difference when the CHIEF is applied by telephone or during in-person interviews. This could help encourage new studies examining the influence of environmental factors on social participation in people with rheumatoid arthritis. In conclusion, the telephone-based application of the CHIEF showed to be a valid and reliable method for the assessment of barriers to participation in people with rheumatoid arthritis.