- Title
- Reliability and validity of the Workhab Functional Capacity Evaluation
- Creator
- James, Carole L.
- Relation
- University of Newcastle Research Higher Degree Thesis
- Resource Type
- thesis
- Date
- 2011
- Description
- Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
- Description
- Functional Capacity Evaluations (FCEs) are part of practice in occupational rehabilitation, and are designed to define an individual’s functional abilities in the context of safe, productive work tasks. The WorkHab Functional Capacity Evaluation is one of many currently available FCEs. It is commonly used in Australian occupational rehabilitation: however, there is a lack of evidence of its psychometric properties. This thesis reports on research that investigated reliability and aspects of validity of the WorkHab FCE. The current practice of FCE use in the Australian occupational rehabilitation context was investigated. Qualitative and quantitative methodology were used to study the perceptions and practices of health professionals about the use and clinical utility of FCE’s. Results found health professionals use more than one FCE, with the WorkHab FCE the second most commonly used in NSW Australia. There was consistency and similarities in FCE use in practice, with participants adapting FCEs to suit the situation and completing parts rather than the whole of a FCE. Four studies subsequently investigated the measurement properties of the WorkHab FCE. The manual handling components were evaluated, including test-retest reliability in healthy adults, and intra-rater and inter-rater reliability using DVD footage of injured workers FCEs. Content validity was evaluated using a cross sectional survey of health professionals who use FCEs in practice. Construct validity of the bench to shoulder lift was explored using Electromyography (EMG) to study muscle activity in the upper body. Results found substantial levels of test-retest reliability and intra-rater and inter-rater reliability for the lifting components of the WorkHab FCE. The findings support content validity for the WorkHab FCE specifically in relation to manual work and vocational retraining; however, construct (convergent) validity of the safe maximal lift of the bench to shoulder lift of the WorkHab FCE was unable to be established using EMG physiological parameters. Future directions for research of the WorkHab FCE and implications for clinical practice are discussed.
- Subject
- Functional Capacity Evaluation; reliability; validity; WorkHab FCE
- Identifier
- uon:8721
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/918852
- Rights
- Copyright 2011 Carole L. James
- Language
- eng
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