Quality of Life Assessment: International Perspectives : Proceedings of the Joint-Meeting Organized by the World Health Organization and the Fondation IPSEN in Paris, July 2 – 3, 1993

Considerable data and expertise have accumulated in the assessment of quality of life, but to date this assessment has largely been restricted to the devel- ment of instruments that are used only in the setting in which they were dev- oped. The chapters of this book, taken together, apply this expertise to a re- tively new area: international quality of life assessment, that is to say, consid- ing quality of life from an international perspective, and developing methods for the assessment of quality of life that can be used in more than one cultural setting. The World Health Organization (WHO) initiatives in the area of inter- tional quality of life assessment arose for several compelling reasons. The World Health Organization has a commitment to equitable and accessible health care for all. This commitment refers not only to health in its narrow sense of the absence of disease and impairment, but to health as astate of physical, mental and social well-being. Disease and impairment affect not just the physical domain of life but also a person's psychological state, level of - dependence and social relationships. This is a reality not yet fully reflected in health care settings. The broadening in focus in the measurement of health to include indicators which address this more holistic sense of health is a welcome emerging trend. The primary aim of any health intervention is to maximise health and minimise disease, thereby enhancing patients' quality of life. Front Matter....Pages I-XV Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Translation of Health Status Instruments....Pages 3-18 Cross-Cultural Validation of Quality of Life Measures....Pages 19-32 Ensuring International Equivalence of Quality of Life Measures: Problems and Approaches to Solutions....Pages 33-40 The Development of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment Instrument (the WHOQOL)....Pages 41-57 Front Matter....Pages 59-59 The Relationship Between Health Economics and Health-Related Quality of Life....Pages 61-74 The PCASEE Model: An Approach to Subjective Well-Being....Pages 75-79 Front Matter....Pages 81-81 Quality of Life Assessment in Southwest Oncology Group Clinical Trials: Translating and Validating a Spanish Questionnaire....Pages 83-97 Quality of Life Assessment in Cancer Patients in India: Cross-Cultural Issues....Pages 99-107 Measuring the Quality of Life in Breast Cancer....Pages 109-127 Front Matter....Pages 129-129 The Experiences and Quality of Life of Informal Caregivers....Pages 131-150 Quality of Life Assessment in Arthritis....Pages 151-160 The Assessment of Quality of Life in Refugees....Pages 161-175 Quality of Life in Hypertensives and Normotensives in Israel: Introducing a Self-Structured Subjective Measure....Pages 177-184 Subjective Quality of Life Assessment in Therapeutic Trials: Presentation of a New Instrument in France (SQLP: Subjective Quality of Life Profile) and First Results....Pages 185-195 Back Matter....Pages 197-200 This book brings together contributions from a number of the investigators and advisers involved in the development of a WHO Quality of Life assessment instrument. The chapters focus particularly on some of the issues that have to be taken account of when we wish to compare measures obtained in one country or culture with those obtained in another. General issues are dealt with, as well as more specific issues to do with a particular disease such as cancer, or with specific groups of people. The contributors have had experience in work on quality of life and similar topics in a number of different cultural settings, and their experience enriches our understanding of the problems this poses