Abstract

CAMPS BALLESTER, Eduard et al. Evaluation of the degree of functional autonomy of chronic renal patients according to Barthel, Lawton indices and the scale of the Dependence Act. Rev Soc Esp Enferm Nefrol [online]. 2009, vol.12, n.2, pp.28-34. ISSN 1139-1375.

Dependence is a state in which people find themselves when, for reasons related to the lack or loss of physical, psychic or intellectual autonomy, they need important assistance and/or help in order to carry out basic activities of daily life. Act 39/2006, on Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Attention to People in a Situation of Dependence includes a scale that determines the degree and level of dependence of the person to be evaluated. In the nursing process, in order to evaluate the degree of autonomy, instruments such as Barthel or Lawton indices are commonly used. The results obtained using the Barthel and Lawton indices and the Dependence Act scale are compared through a transversal, prospective study (October 2007 - February 2008) carried out in the Nephrology Unit of the Vic Hospital Consortium (Barcelona) which included all patients aged over 65, undergoing periodic haemodialysis. The patients were evaluated using the Barthel and Lawton indices; and subsequently the evaluation was carried out using the scale of the Dependence Act. The data were analysed using the statistical package SPSS 14.0, to compare measurements the Student’s t-test was used. To determine the possible correlation between variables, the simple regression (Pearson) method was used and the percentages were compared using the McNemar test. Of 91 patients, 52 (23 men) are over 65 years of age (57.14%) and of these 34 are over 80 years of age. According to the scale defi ned in the Dependence Act, 32 patients are independent, 16 show moderate dependence, 6 show severe dependence and 1 shows maximum dependence. According to the Barthel index, 19 are independent, 29 show mild dependence, 4 show moderate and 1 shows severe dependence. According to the Lawton index, 14 were independent, 19 had mild dependence, 15 severe and 4 maximum dependence. The time used to determine the Barthel index and the Lawton index varies from 2-3 minutes, while the time required for the test defined in the Dependence Act varies from 10-12 minutes. The scores obtained using the three instruments are very disparate, with the scale defined in the Dependence Act offering more restrictive scores.

Keywords : Barthel Index; Lawton Index; Dependence; haemodialysis.

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