The Person Centered approach in Gerontology: New validity evidence of the Staff Assessment Person-directed Care Questionnaire

Background/Objective Person centered care is a novel approach which aims to improve care quality in services for older people requiring care. The aim of this work is the adaptation and validation of the Staff Assessment Person-directed Care (PDC) in a Spanish population. Method The PDC was applied to a sample of 1,339 direct care professionals from 56 elderly care homes. The psychometric properties were analyzed within the framework of Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory models. Results The measure showed a high reliability provided by Cronbach's alpha (α = .96), the test-retest reliability (r = .88), and also an adequate Information Function (highest scores between theta values -2 and +2). The factorial structure of PDC is essentially unidimensional, and confirms the existence of two large dimensions which are in turn expressed in eight highly correlated factors. Especially notable in terms of validity evidence based on relations to others variables are the correlations of PDC with the The Person-centered Care Assessment Tool (r= .68), organizational climate (r = .67), emotional exhaustion (r= -.41) and personal accomplishment (r = .45). Conclusions The Spanish version of the PDC demonstrates adequate psychometric properties for its use in the evaluation of elderly care facilities, both for professional and research purposes.