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The Work Disability Functional Assessment Battery (WD-FAB): Development and validation review

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TBV – Tijdschrift voor Bedrijfs- en Verzekeringsgeneeskunde Aims and scope

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Comprehensive, efficient assessment of work-related activity limitations is imperative to government disability programs and clinicians working with patients experiencing work limitations. This article describes the development and initial validation of a newly developed instrument: the Work Disability Functional Assessment Battery (WD-FAB). The WD-FAB characterises physical and mental function across 8 key dimensions related to work: Basic Mobility; Upper Body Function; Fine Motor Function; Community Mobility; Mood & Emotions; Resilience & Sociability; Self-Regulation; and Cognition & Communication. The WD-FAB draws upon a pool of over 300 items to generate scores for all 8 scales in under 15 minutes. WD-FAB scores allow direct comparisons between individuals with self-reported activity limitations and sex- and age-matched adults. Future research with the WD-FAB in both the US and Europe has potential implications for enhancing disability assessment methodologies within the context of disability determination and insurance medicine systems.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Rehabilitation Medicine Department, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA

    Julia Porcino & Leighton Chan

  2. Department of Occupational Therapy, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA

    Beth Marfeo

  3. Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Christine McDonough

Authors
  1. Julia Porcino
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  2. Beth Marfeo
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  3. Christine McDonough
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  4. Leighton Chan
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Correspondence to Julia Porcino.

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Porcino, J., Marfeo, B., McDonough, C. et al. The Work Disability Functional Assessment Battery (WD-FAB): Development and validation review. TBV - Tijdschr Bedrijfs- en Verzekeringsgeneeskd 26, 344–349 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12498-018-0247-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12498-018-0247-0

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