Quality of Life Index for Adults (A-QLI) Provider Questionnaire

Abstract

The Quality of Life Index for Adults (A-QLI) Provider Questionnaire is a specialized instrument designed to measure the Quality of Life (QoL) of adult clients from the perspective of their care providers or clinicians. This proxy assessment tool is critical for evaluating QoL in populations where self-report may be unreliable or impossible, such as individuals with severe mental illness or cognitive impairments. The questionnaire covers several key domains, including Physical Health, functional status (Self-Care and household tasks), Symptom burden, Social Support, and Psychological Well-being. The resulting data provides a comprehensive, multi-dimensional view of the client’s functioning and overall quality of life as observed by the professional caregiver.

Keywords

Quality of Life Index for Adults, A-QLI, Provider Questionnaire, proxy assessment, functional status, physical health, psychological health, social support, mental health, psychological assessment, adult care.

Authors

Marion Becker, Ph.D. (University of South Florida)

Purpose

The primary purpose of the A-QLI Provider Questionnaire is to gather objective and subjective data regarding an adult client’s life quality and functional capabilities through a reliable third-party observer—the care provider. This approach addresses the limitations of self-report measures when working with clinical populations who may experience challenges related to insight, memory, or communication barriers.

The scale is structured to facilitate treatment planning and outcome monitoring by quantifying specific areas of impairment and identifying critical areas for intervention, particularly those related to activities of daily living (ADLs), medication adherence, and managing psychiatric symptoms. It also includes sections for defining and tracking personalized goals, ensuring that interventions are client-centered, even when reported by a proxy.

Construct

The A-QLI measures the multi-dimensional construct of Quality of Life, defined here through observable behaviors, functional capacity, and symptomatic distress. The instrument operationalizes QoL across five major domains: Physical Health and Functioning, Self-Care/Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs), Pain and Symptoms, Social Relations/Support, and Psychological Well-Being.

This approach ensures that the assessment goes beyond merely measuring symptom severity, focusing instead on the practical impact of health conditions on the client’s daily life and ability to pursue personal goals. The inclusion of provider ratings on managing complex issues like depression, substance misuse, and concentration difficulties offers a detailed clinical profile.

Validity

Specific validity studies (e.g., content validity, concurrent validity with patient self-report, or predictive validity regarding treatment outcomes) are typically detailed in the full scale documentation. Given that this is a provider-report measure, establishing inter-rater reliability and comparing provider ratings against objective clinical markers are crucial steps in validating the instrument.

The thorough coverage of standard QoL domains suggests strong content validity, aligning with established models of health-related Quality of Life assessment used in mental health and rehabilitation settings. Users are advised to consult the primary academic literature produced by the University of South Florida team for detailed psychometric validation data.

Reliability

Information regarding the internal consistency (e.g., Cronbach’s alpha) and test-retest reliability for the A-QLI Provider Questionnaire is typically found in accompanying technical manuals or peer-reviewed publications. For proxy measures such as this, high levels of inter-rater reliability among different providers observing the same client are essential to ensure consistent measurement.

The structure of the scale, using standardized response anchors (e.g., Likert scales ranging from “All Days” to “No Days” or “Poor” to “Excellent”), contributes to measurement stability. Comprehensive psychometrics documentation should be sought directly from the authors to determine the instrument’s suitability for specific research or clinical purposes.

Factor Analysis

While explicit factor analysis results are not provided in the source excerpt, the scale structure strongly suggests an underlying multi-factor model consistent with modern QoL theory. Expected factors would likely correspond to the major domains sampled: Physical Functioning/Mobility, Psychological Distress, Social/Relational Support, and Independence/Self-Care.

Exploratory or Confirmatory Factor Analysis (EFA/CFA) would typically be employed by the developers to confirm that the items cluster appropriately into these intended domains, ensuring the scale accurately captures distinct components of the QoL construct. Such analyses are fundamental to establishing the construct validity of any psychological assessment tool.

Instrument

Test Type: Provider Proxy Report Questionnaire (Clinical/Research Tool)

Format: Structured questionnaire utilizing Likert scales (e.g., 5-point, 10-point), binary (Yes/No) responses, and open-ended items for goal setting.

Language Available: English (based on the source content).

Population Group: Clinical populations receiving care, particularly in community mental health or long-term care settings.

Age Group: Adults.

Population Details: Clients whose Quality of Life is being assessed by a treating physician, therapist, or care coordinator.

Test Methodology: Assessment of client status and functioning over the preceding four weeks, based on provider observation and clinical knowledge.

Keywords

Provider proxy report, functional assessment, symptom management, goal attainment, ADLs, IADLs, University of South Florida, Marion Becker, psychometrics, clinical outcome measure.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not specified in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: Marion Becker, Ph.D., University of South Florida, Department of Community Mental Health, 13301 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., MHC 1423, Tampa, Florida 33612-3899

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The instrument is associated with academic research at the University of South Florida (USF). Permissions for use should be requested directly from the corresponding author, Marion Becker, Ph.D., via the provided contact information. The scale is likely available for non-commercial academic use, but licensing or usage fees for commercial applications are not specified.

Test Year: Not specified in the source content. Users should contact the authors for the latest version and publication date. The original instrument can be found at the USF website: http://wqli.fmhi.usf.edu/wqli-instruments/

Reference’s

• Instrument Source: University of South Florida, Department of Community Mental Health. Available at: http://wqli.fmhi.usf.edu/wqli-instruments/

• Correspondence: Marion Becker, Ph.D., University of South Florida. Telephone: (813)974-7188; Fax: (813)974-6469; E-Mail: [email protected]

Items of the Quality of Life Index for Adults (A-QLI) Provider Questionnaire

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

It’s not complete instrument: please see source.

PHYSICAL HEALTH (sample)

The following questions refer to your client’s health status. Please check (3) the most appropriate answer.

• In general‚ would you say your client’s physical health is: Poor‚ Fair‚ Good‚ Very Good‚ Excellent

• Compared to one year ago‚ how would you rate your client’s health in general now? Much Worse‚ Somewhat Worse‚ About the Same‚ Somewhat Better‚ Much Better

Please choose the answer that best describes how true or false the following statements are for your client.

• Compared to others the age of my client his/her health is as good as can be expected. Definitely False‚ Mostly False‚ Not Sure‚ Mostly True‚ True Definitely

• I expect this client’s health to get worse. Definitely False‚ Mostly False‚ Not Sure‚ Mostly True‚ True Definitely

• Does your client take medication for his/her health? Yes No

If yes‚ how many different medications does he/she take? ____

• (Include all medications; over the counter‚ prescribed‚ herbal‚ etc.)

YES‚ NO

• Does your client require help in taking his/her medications correctly?

• Is your client bothered by side effects from his/her medications?

During the past four weeks‚ have your client’s activities been limited in any of the following ways due to problems with his/her physical health?

Yes; completely‚ Yes; limited a lot‚ Yes; limited some‚ Yes; limited a little‚ No; not limited

• Limited the kind she could do? of activities he/

• Limited the amount of time he/she could do other activities he/she would like to do?

• Limited him/her in performing self-care?

The following questions are about activities your client might do on a typical day. In the past four weeks‚ has your client’s health limited him/her in any of the following activities?

All Days‚ Most Days‚ Some Days‚ Few Days‚ No Days

• Moderate Activities‚ such as moving a table‚ pushing a vacuum cleaner‚ bowling or playing golf.

• Lifting or carrying groceries.

• Climbing several flights of stairs.

• Climbing one flight of stairs.

• Bending‚ kneeling or stooping.

• Walking several blocks.

• Walking one block.

• Walking short distances. (e.g. around his/her house)

SELF-CARE

These questions refer to self-care tasks. Please check (x) the most appropriate answer.

During the past four weeks…

All Days‚ Most Days‚ Some Days‚ Few Days‚ No Days

• Did your client need help from another person to take a bath or shower?

• Did your client need help from another person to get dressed?

• Did your client need help from another person to use the toilet?

• Did your client need help from another person to eat?

• Did your client need help from another person to get in or out of bed?

These questions refer to household tasks. Please check (3) the most appropriate answer.

During the past four weeks…

All Days‚ Most Days‚ Some Days‚ Few Days‚ No Days

• Has your client been able to go shopping for groceries without help?

• Has your client been able to prepare his/her own meals without help?

• Has your client been able to do his/her own housework without help?

• Has your client been able to do his/her own laundry without help?

• Has your client been able to use public transportation or drive his/her own car?

PAIN AND SYMPTOMS

• How much pain has your client had during the past four weeks (check one)?

• During the past four weeks how much has pain interfered with your client’s normal activities weeks (check one)?

• Does your client take pain medication? Yes‚ No

If yes: Is your client’s pain controlled by the medication he/she takes weeks (check one)?

• If your client’s pain is not controlled by medication‚ how is it controlled? —– Pain can’t be controlled

SOCIAL RELATIONS / SUPPORT

• During the past four weeks‚ your client has: (Check one)

• How would you describe the quality of your client’s relationship with his/her family? (Check one)

PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING

• In the past four weeks would you say that your client’s overall psychological health has been: Poor‚ Fair‚ Good‚ Very Good‚ Excellent

• During the past four weeks‚ your client has: (check one)

• During the past four weeks‚ has your client experienced a major loss? Yes‚ No

Please indicate below if during the past four weeks‚ your client’s activities have been limited in any of the following ways due to emotional difficulties.

Yes; completely‚ Yes; limited a lot‚ Yes; limited some‚ Yes; limited a little‚ No; not limited

• Limited the kind of activities your client could do?

• Limited the amount of time your client could do activities he/she would like to do?

• Limited your client in performing self-care or attend social activities?

To what extent is your client experiencing difficulty in the area of:

All Days‚ Most Days‚ Some Days‚ Few Days‚ No Days

• Managing day-to-day life (making decisions‚ handling money)?

• Getting enough sleep?

• Maintaining an adequate diet?

• Concentration‚ memory or confusion?

• Depression‚ hopelessness?

• Sexual activity?

• Mood swings?

• Drinking alcoholic beverages?

• Misusing drugs (including prescription drugs)?

• Please check the box below to indicate your rating of this person’s quality of life during the past four weeks. Lowest quality means things are as bad as they could be. Highest quality means things are the best they could be. LOWEST QUALITY 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 HIGHEST QUALITY

PERSONAL GOALS

Please list below the three most important goals for improving this client’s life.

Goal 1: _________________________________________

• To what extent has this goal been acheived? Not at all achieved 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Completely achieved

Goal 2: ________________________________________

• To what extent has this goal been acheived? Not at all achieved 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Completely achieved

Goal 3: ________________________________________

• To what extent has this goal been acheived? Not at all achieved 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Completely achieved