Development and Validation of an Instrument Measuring Individual Empowerment in Relation to Personal Health Care: The Health Care Empowerment Questionnaire (HCEQ)

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Abstract
Purpose.: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a questionnaire that measures the degree of individual empowerment in relation to personal health care and services. Design.: The questionnaire was developed by identifying individual empowerment indicators from the literature, generating corresponding items, and pretesting the tool with older persons. Setting.: The Health Care Empowerment Questionnaire (HCEQ) was developed and validated with subjects participating in the Program of Research to Integrate Services for the Maintenance of Autonomy (PRISMA) in the Sherbrooke and Quebec City area. Subjects.: Eight hundred seventy-three subjects agreed to participate, for a response rate of 56.28%. The mean ages of men and women were 81.1 and 82.4 years, respectively. Analysis.: Factor analysis (exploratory and confirmatory) determined the validity of the questionnaire, and the reliability was assessed using measures of internal consistency and temporal stability (test-retest). Results.: The multidimensional nature of the concept of individual empowerment was confirmed by three factors that explain more than 68% of the total variance. The Cronhbach's alpha coefficient of internal consistency was .83 and the intraclass correlation coefficients (test-retest) was .70 (95% CI: .48–.83). Conclusion.: In light of these findings, the characteristics and multidimensional perspective of the HCEQ appear to be useful in advancing knowledge about individual empowerment in relation to personal health care and services.