Developing the content of a locomotor disability scale for adults in Bangladesh: a qualitative study

Ilias Mahmud; Lynda Clarke; George B. Ploubidis

doi:10.1186/s40945-017-0035-7

Authors

Ilias Mahmud College of Public Health and Health Informatics, Qassim University, Al Bukayriah, Al Qassim, Saudi Arabia
Lynda Clarke Department of Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK
George B. Ploubidis Department of Social Science, Centre for Longitudinal Studies, University College London, 55-59 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0NU, UK

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40945-017-0035-7

Keywords:

Disability, Locomotor disability, Physical disability, Locomotor disability scale, Bangladesh

Abstract

Background: Bangladesh has an estimated 17 million adults with disabilities. A significant proportion of them are believed to have locomotor disabilities. There are over 300 non-governmental organizations providing different types of rehabilitation services to them. However, there is no locally developed and validated locomotor disability measurement scale in Bangladesh. The purpose of this study was to develop a locomotor disability scale with disability indicators suitable for adults in Bangladesh. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 purposively selected adults with locomotor disabilities to generate scale items. At the second stage, cognitive interviews were conducted with 12 purposively selected adults with locomotor disabilities in order to refine the measurement questions and response categories. Data were analysed using the framework technique- identifying, abstracting, charting and matching themes across the interviews. Results: For a locomotor disability scale, 70 activities (disability indicators) were identified: 37 mobility activities, 9 activities of daily living, 17 work/productivity activities and 7 leisure activities. Cognitive interviews revealed that when asking the respondents to rate their difficulty in performing the activities, instead of just mentioning the activity name, such as taking a bath or shower, a detailed description of the activity and response options were necessary to ensure consistent interpretation of the disability indicators and response options across all respondents. Conclusions: Identifying suitable disability indicators was the first step in developing a locomotor disability scale for adults in Bangladesh. Interviewing adults with locomotor disabilities in Bangladesh ensured that the locomotor disability scale is of relevance to them and consequently it has excellent content validity. Further research is needed to evaluate the psychometric properties of this scale.