Amiram Catz , Malka Itzkovich , Flavia Steinberg , Ora Philo , Haim Ring , Jacob Ronen , Raluca Spasser , Reuven Gepstein , Ada Tamir
DOI: 10.1080/165019702760279224

The Catz-Itzkovich Spinal Cord Independence Measure was found to be reliable and more sensitive than the FIM to functional changes, when used by a multidisciplinary team. This study was performed to find out whether assessment may be similar when done by a single rater. Twenty-eight patients with spinal cord lesions participated in the study, in which examinations performed within a week by a single nurse or a team were compared for correlation, differences and agreement. The team members scored their relevant fields. A significant correlation was found between the nurse's scoring and that of physiotherapists and occupational therapists (r = 0. 82-0. 94; p < 0. 0001), and the differences between the mean scores were small. The agreement between raters was modest, however (total agreement 38- 90%, Kappa 0. 17-0. 73). It was concluded that although disability assessment performed by a single nurse may not be as accurate as by a multidisciplinary team, it could be reliable and valid.