• Diana Zidarov, Regina Visca, and Sara Ahmed.
• Faculty of Medicine, School of Physical and Occupational Therapy, McGill University, 5130 rue Fabre, Montreal, QC, Canada.
• Qual Life Res. 2019 Oct 1; 28 (10): 2761-2771.

PurposeTo evaluate the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) domains currently assessed by healthcare professionals (HCPs) in secondary and tertiary hospital-based chronic pain clinics and the type of clinical outcomes (CO) used.MethodsElectronic cross-sectional survey (May to September 2016) based on domains of HRQoL included in the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) framework.ResultsHCPs response rate was 53% (36/68). Their mean clinical experience was 14.8 years (± 11.1), and their mean experience treating chronic pain (CP) population was 10.2 years (± 7.8). All PROMIS-HRQoL domains were assessed by HCPs (range 28-97%, mean = 64%) with a preponderance of domains related to physical health (mean = 82%). Standardized outcome measures (OMs) including performance outcomes and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were not frequently used (mean 0.5% and 3%, respectively) for assessing HRQoL domains compared to clinician reported outcomes (patient interviews, patient observation) (mean = 87%). Forty different OMs for assessing HRQoL domains were reported, and 30% of OMs were used by more than one HCP. HCPs expressed a need (range from 2.3 to 26.3%) for using more than one type of CO for assessing most domains of HRQoL (range from 2.3 to 26.3%) with a preference of using more PROs combined with CROs.ConclusionsAll domains of HRQoL are assessed by at least some HCPs for chronic pain management. Standardized OMs including performance-based measures and PROs were not frequently used, and there was no consistent use of the same OM across HCPs. A consensus among different stakeholders in chronic pain management on core domains of HRQoL and their associated OMs to promote a more evidence-based assessment is needed.

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