Summary

Dr. Gordon Guyatt at McMaster University developed the Global Rating of Change Questionnaire (GRCQ), an approach to elucidating the significance of changes in score in quality of life instruments by comparing them to global rating of change.

The GRCQ is a validated questionnaire consisting of 10 questions that provides a global measure to confirm, interpret and generalize findings of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) instruments or outcomes. It has 3 items that assess the overall effect to whether a patient experienced any change in activity limitation, symptoms, or feelings since the treatment started using a 7-point scale.

The GRCQ has been used to establish the clinically minimal important difference in evaluative studies or to measure a global rating change in health status or HRQOL. The GRCQ also establishes a range for changes in questionnaire scores that correspond to moderate and large changes in the domains of interest. These domains of interest, for the use of this questionnaire, can be focused to specific domains of health such as dyspnea, depression etc.

To meet increasing demand for electronic versions of questionnaires, the GRCQ is available in electronic format as well as in hardcopy. MILO is working closely with translation companies to review electronic conversions of all questionnaires in its library. MILO is also continuing to increase the portfolio of validated translations for questionnaires.