Functional mobility assessment is reliable and correlated with satisfaction, independence and skills

ABSTRACT

Mobility is essential for activities of daily living and therapists should give priority to evaluate its effects in their client’s performance. We aimed to ascertain the intra- and inter-rater reliability of Functional Mobility Assessment (FMA) and to identify correlations among satisfaction, independence, and skills in 44 users of manual wheelchairs and three users of powered wheelchairs. We analyzed the test-retest and inter-rater reliability of the FMA in a sample of 47 wheelchair users using the Cronbach’s Alpha. For correlations with FMA were used the Quebec User Evaluation of Satisfaction with Assistive Technology, Functional Independence Measure, and Wheelchair Skills Test Questionnaire (manual and powered forms). The test-retest reliability showed good internal consistency (α > 0.9). Associations between functional independence, wheelchair skills, and functional mobility were significant (p < .05). The Brazilian version of the FMA is reliable for use among wheelchair users, and its correlation with other measurements suggests cohesion among assessments related to mobility devices.

KEYWORDS:

• assessment
• mobility
• outcomes
• self-help devices
• wheeled mobility aids

Acknowledgments

We express thanks for the financial support provided by the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES).

Conflict of interests

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

This study was approved by an Ethics and Research Committee of the Federal University of São Carlos (Protocol No. 939.039).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by a research grant from the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento Pessoal e de Nível Superior).