The following characteristics apply to tools for use across all therapeutic disciplines. They have been used to confirm whether a tool is of high enough quality to be included in the Natspec toolkit but will also be useful to therapists in quality checking tools they are already using or in selecting new tools.
To be of high quality and appropriate for use with students in specialist FE colleges, a therapy outcomes measurement tool should:
- be capable of integration into a coherent and holistic package of learning and support for the student
- be sensitive to recognising individual changes, no matter how small
- be person-centred
- be reasonably easy to understand and use once training is complete and not incur excessive costs
- be evidence-based, having been tested and evaluated by a recognised external body, or through other rigorous means
- consistently and reliably generate outputs which therapists recognise as accurately reflecting the abilities /progress of their students.
The output generated through use of the tool should:
- be objective and allow an MDT approach.
- include measurable quantitative and qualitative data to support stakeholder interest and evidence impact on students’ lives.
- be meaningful to our students and generate outcomes from their own priorities.
- include data that allows for comparisons to be made when the tool is re-used, e.g. to measure progress against baseline data.
