Person-centered Care Assessment Tool, a focus in quality healthcare: A systematic review of psychometric properties

Abstract

Background The person-centered care (PCC) approach plays a fundamental role in ensuring quality healthcare. The Person-centered Care Assessment Tool (P-CAT) is one of the shortest and simplest tools available today to measure the PCC approac. This systematic review’s objective was to conduct a systematic review of the evidence in the validation studies of the P-CAT, taking the "Standards" as a frame of reference. Methods First, a systematic literature review was conducted following the PRISMA method. Second, a systematic descriptive literature review of validity tests was conducted following the "Standards" framework. The search strategy and information sources, was made through Cochrane, Web of Science (WoS), Scopus and PubMed databases were searched. Eligibility criteria and selection process, a protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42022335866), and the articles had to meet inclusion criteria to be included in the systematic review. Results Empirical evidence indicated that these validations offer a high number of sources related to test content, internal structure for dimensionality and internal consistency. Moderate number of sources pertaining to internal structure in terms of test-retest reliability and for the relationship with other variables. And very low numbers of evidences for response processes, internal structure in measurement invariance terms, and test consequences. Conclusions The various validations of the P-CAT are not framed in a structured theoretical framework like the "Standards" are.This can affect clinical practice, as people's health may depend on it. The findings of this study show that validation studies continue to focus on the types of validity traditionally studied, leaving aside the interpretation of the scores in terms of their intended use.