Italian version of the physical therapy patient satisfaction questionnaire: cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric properties

Background. Patient satisfaction is an important measure for evaluating interventions in health care. No patient satisfaction questionnaire for physical therapy treatment has been validated to date for use in an Italian outpatient population. Objective. The aim of this study was to translate, culturally adapt, and validate the Italian version of the Physical Therapy Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (PTPSQ-I). Design. A measurement study was conducted. Methods. The PTPSQ-I was developed through forward-backward translation, final review, and pre-final version. An acceptability analysis was first conducted. Reliability was measured by internal consistency (Cronbach a), and a factor analysis was applied to investigate the internal structure. Divergent validity was measured by comparing the PTPSQ-I with a visual analog scale (VAS) and with a 5-point Likert-type scale evaluating the global perceived effect (GPE) for the physical therapy treatment. Results. The process for developing the PTPSQ-I required 3 months using data on 315 outpatients. Based on our initial analyses, 5 items were deleted from the PTPSQ-I, which was renamed the PTPSQ-I(15). The PTPSQ-I(15) showed high internal consistency (a =.905). Divergent validity was moderate for the GPE (r=.33) but not significant for the VAS (r= -.07). A factor analysis revealed evidence for a 2-factor structure related to perceived "Overall Experience" and "Professional Impression" that explained 62% of the total variance. A third factor, "Efficiency and Convenience," brought explained total variance to near 70%. Limitations. It may be necessary to add items to the PTPSQ-I(15) to assess other dimensions not currently represented by these 15 items. Conclusion. The PTPSQ-I(15) showed good psychometric properties, and its use can be recommended with Italian-speaking outpatient populations