The High-Level Mobility Assessment Tool (HiMAT) for Traumatic Brain Injury. Part I: Item Generation
By Williams, G.; Robertson, V.; Greenwood, K.; Goldie, P.; Morris, M. E.; Brain Injury, Vol. 19, No. 11, pp. 925-932Publication Date: October 2005
Study conducted to create a comprehensive list of items for the High-Level Mobility Assessment Tool (HiMAT), which is a scale that would be appropriate for assessing high-level mobility in people with traumatic brain injury. An evaluation of existing adult and pediatric mobility scales was conducted, while expert clinicians were surveyed for their opinions on suitable items. The evaluation identified 18 items from 31 mobility scales, which included nine walking items and higher-level activities such as stair use, running, jumping, and hopping. The expert clinicians produced a list of 157 items, which was condensed to 88 items for ranking on a questionnaire. Fifteen items were rated as very important by 80 percent of the clinicians, as they included walking forwards, walking on slopes and different surfaces, and changing directions. The final list including walking, running, hopping, skipping, jumping, and balance items. The authors contend that the initial version of the HiMAT has face and content validity, though further testing is warranted in order to investigate whether it is uni-dimensional and valid for people with traumatic brain injury.
Published by: Taylor & Francis, Limited (Website:http://taylorandfrancis.org)
International Brain Injury Association (Web Site: http://www.internationalbrain.org )
