Measure Your Medical Outcome Profile (MYMOP2)

Abstract

The Measure Your Medical Outcome Profile (MYMOP2) is a brief, patient-generated outcome measure designed primarily for use in primary care settings. Developed by Paterson, this instrument allows individuals to identify and rate the severity of their most bothersome symptoms (physical or mental) and one activity that is limited by their health problem. By focusing on individualized concerns, MYMOP2 provides a highly relevant assessment of clinical change from the patient’s perspective. It incorporates a simple 0 to 6 rating scale for tracking changes in symptoms, a chosen activity, and general wellbeing over the course of treatment.

Keywords

Patient-reported outcomes, primary care, individualized measures, symptom severity, functional status, wellbeing, medical outcomes, patient-generated, health assessment.

Authors

Charlotte Paterson

[quads id=5]

Purpose

The fundamental purpose of the Measure Your Medical Outcome Profile (MYMOP2) is to provide a sensitive and relevant measure of change in health status that is driven entirely by the patient’s priorities. Unlike standardized quality of life measures, MYMOP2 captures the specific symptoms and functional limitations that matter most to the individual receiving care, making it highly suitable for evaluating the effectiveness of diverse interventions, particularly in primary care and complementary medicine.

The scale is intended for repeated administration (baseline and follow-up) to gauge the magnitude of clinical improvement or deterioration. It facilitates a more comprehensive understanding of the therapeutic process by including questions about medication use and other non-treatment factors that might influence the patient’s perceived outcome.

Construct

MYMOP2 primarily measures the construct of Perceived Health Status Change through four core dimensions: specific symptom severity (up to two symptoms), functional activity limitation, and general wellbeing. This approach is highly reflective of patient-centered outcomes, where the success of treatment is defined by improvements in areas identified as crucial by the patient.

The scale captures subjective distress and functional impact rather than objective clinical markers. By allowing patients to define the variables (symptoms and activity), the construct is inherently flexible and tailored, distinguishing it from generic health profiles like the SF-36 health survey, which assesses predetermined domains.

Validity

Research has established the validity of MYMOP2 through comparison with standardized instruments and through qualitative evaluation. Concurrent validity was demonstrated in early studies by Paterson (1996), which compared MYMOP scores favorably with those derived from the SF-36 health survey, indicating that both scales capture related aspects of health status, although MYMOP is more sensitive to individualized change.

Content and face validity are inherently high because the items assessed (symptoms and activity) are self-generated by the patient, ensuring direct relevance to their current health problems. Qualitative evaluations (Paterson & Britten, 2000; Paterson, 2004) further supported its validity by confirming that patients found the scale meaningful and accurately reflective of their concerns and progress over time.

Reliability

The reliability of the MYMOP2 scale is generally assessed through its ability to consistently track changes and its reproducibility across administrations and cultural contexts. Studies focusing on reproducibility, such as the cultural adaptation work by Lima et al. (2016), have supported its consistency and utility in different populations, confirming that the individualized measures remain stable enough between administrations to capture meaningful change.

While test-retest reliability for the baseline scores of the specific symptoms can be variable due to the dynamic nature of patient-defined problems, the scale’s strength lies in its responsiveness to change, often considered a crucial form of reliability in outcome measures. The structured 0-6 Likert scale provides a clear metric for tracking incremental improvement.

Factor Analysis

Due to the highly individualized and patient-generated nature of the MYMOP2 components, traditional exploratory or confirmatory factor analysis is not typically applied to the scale in the same way as it is for standardized, fixed-item instruments. The scale is intentionally multidimensional, comprising four distinct, though related, domains (two symptoms, one activity, and general wellbeing).

The primary analysis of MYMOP2 focuses on the change scores (MYMOP scores) across these four items separately or averaged, rather than establishing underlying latent factors. Each item is treated as an independent measure of an outcome prioritized by the patient.

Instrument

Test Type: Patient-Generated, Individualized Outcome Measure

Format: Self-administered questionnaire utilizing a 7-point Likert scale (0 = As good as it could be, 6 = As bad as it could be) for severity and wellbeing ratings.

Language Available: English, with validated cultural adaptations reported in other languages (e.g., Portuguese).

Population Group: Clinical populations in primary care settings, suitable for chronic and acute conditions.

Age Group: Adults (typically used with individuals capable of self-reporting and defining symptoms).

Population Details: Widely used across various health complaints where a subjective measure of outcome is required, including musculoskeletal issues, chronic pain, and mental health concerns.

Test Methodology: Patients define up to two primary symptoms and one functional activity limitation. They then score the severity of these, along with their general wellbeing, over the preceding week. A follow-up measure tracks changes in these specific, self-defined variables.

Keywords

MYMOP2, individualized outcomes, patient-generated, symptom assessment, health status, primary care evaluation, quality of life, outcome measurement.

[quads id=5]

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: Correspondence is generally handled through the author’s primary affiliation, often the University of Bristol (as per resource links).

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The scale was initially developed and published by Charlotte Paterson in 1996 and subsequently revised (MYMOP2). The instrument is widely accessible for research and clinical use. Queries regarding specific permissions or fees should be directed to the primary author, Charlotte Paterson. Additional resources, including a detailed manual, are often available online.

The original PDF manual can be downloaded here: http://www.twelvehealerstrust.com/attach/librarypublications/mymopmanual.pdf

Reference’s

• Paterson, C. (1996). Measuring outcomes in primary care: A patient generated measure, MYMOP, compared with the SF-36 health survey. British Medical Journal, 312(7037), 1016–1020.
• Paterson, C. (1996). Measure Your Medical Outcome Profile (Paterson, 1996). In: Simmons C. A., Lehmann P. (eds). Tools for strengths-based assessment and evaluation, New York, NY: Springer, pp. 127-131. (2013). Google Scholar
• Paterson, C., Britten, N.(2000). In pursuit of patient-centred outcomes: a qualitative evaluation of MYMOP, Measure Yourself Medical Outcome Profile. Journal of Health Services and Research Policy, 5, 27-36.
• Paterson, C. (2004). Seeking the patient’s perspective: A qualitative assessment of EuroQol, COOP-WONCA charts and MYMOP. Quality of Life Research, 13, 871-881.
• Lima, P.M.B., De Brito, R.F., Farias, R.T.F.B., et al. (2016). Cultural adaptation and reproducibility of the Measure Yourself Medical Outcome Profile (Mymop2). Fisioter Mov, 29(2):251-67.

[quads id=5]

Items of the Measure Your Medical Outcome Profile (MYMOP2)

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

Choose one or two symptoms (physical or mental) that bother you the most. Write them on the lines. Now consider how bad each symptom has been, over the last week, and score it by circling your chosen number.

SYMPTOM 1: ________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

SYMPTOM 2: ________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

Now choose one activity (physical, social, or mental) that is important to you, and that your problem makes difficult or prevents you from doing. Score how had it has been in the last week.

ACTIVITY: ___________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

Lastly how would you rate your general feeling of wellbeing during the last week?

As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

How long have you had Symptom 1, either all the time or on and off? Please circle:

0 to 4 weeks, 4 to 12 weeks, 3 months to 1 year, 1 to 5 years over, 5 years

Are you taking any medication FOR THIS PROBLEM? Please circle: YES/NO

IF YES:

1. Please write in name of medication, and how much per day/week

_____________________________________________________________________________

2. Is cutting down this medication: Please circle:

Not important, A bit important, Very important, Not applicable

IF NO:

Is avoiding medication for this problem:

Not important, A bit important, Very important, Not applicable

MYMOP2 FOLLOW UP

Please circle the number to show how severe your problem has been IN THE LAST WEEK.

This should be YOUR opinion, no-one else’s!

SYMPTOM 1: ________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

SYMPTOM 2: ________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

ACTIVITY: ___________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

WELLBEING: How would you rate your general feeling it of wellbeing?

_________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

If an important new symptom has appeared, please describe it and mark how bad it is below.

Otherwise do not use this line.

SYMPTOM 3: ___________ As good as it could be 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 As bad as it could be

The treatment you are receiving may not be the only thing affecting your problem. If there is anything else that you think is important, such as changes you have made yourself, or other things happening in your life, please write them here (write overleaf if you need more space):

Are you taking any medication FOR THIS PROBLEM? Please circle: YES/NO

IF YES:

Please write in name of medication, and how much per day/week

____________________________________________________________________