Validation of a reliable instrument (QUOTE-IBD) for assessing the quality of health care in Greek patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Given the early onset, the chronic and recurrent nature of their disease and their normal life expectancy, patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) may need considerable health care. The purpose of this study is to validate the Greek translation of the QUOTE-IBD questionnaire (GR-QUOTE-IBD). For that purpose we assessed its construct validity, and reliability. Fifty patients (33 ulcerative colitis, 17 Crohn's disease) completed the GR-QUOTE-IBD and visual-analogue scales (VAS) for the patients' evaluation of the quality of separate care dimensions, and of the total care. A subgroup of 33 patients (64%) completed the GR-QUOTE-IBD for a second time. Quality of life was assessed by the short version of the IBDQ. Clinical activity was assessed by Harvey-Bradshaw index and Colitis Activity Index. Correlations among all care dimensions and VAS were positive and highly significant (p<0.001). The total care and all eight dimensional care scores (quality impact and importance) had no significant differences between the baseline and the follow-up visit. Similarly, the correlation coefficients between the scores of the two occasions were all positive (close to one) and highly significant (p<0.001). The GR-QUOTE-IBD proved to be a valid and reliable instrument, applicable in international clinical studies.