Development of a quality of patient-health care provider communication scale from the perspective of patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Objectives: To devise a patient-perspective driven measure of the quality of patient-health care provider communication and to evaluate the psychometric properties of this scale in a sample of 150 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Methods: Items were developed from interviews with 15 patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Two rheumatologists, a behavioral scientist, and a nurse researcher provided item feedback. Exploratory factor analysis with Oblimin rotation was used to examine the dimensionality of the newly developed Patient-Health Care Provider Communication Scale (PHCPCS). Cronbach's alpha was computed to assess internal consistency. Test-retest reliability was determined using the intraclass correlation coefficient. Construct validity was tested by comparing the PHCPCS with the Perceived Involvement in Care Scale (PICS) using correlation analysis. Results: The PHCPCS measured two dimensions of the quality of patient-health care provider communication [Quality Communication (α=0.94) and Negative Patient-Health Care Provider Communication (α=0.73)]. The total PHCPCS score and its Quality Communication Subscale were positively correlated with the total score on the PICS and with the doctor facilitation subscale of the PICS.