The 3-step system: Triage, assessment and matched intervention > Psychosocial assessment of an individual’s barriers > Useful questionnaires to aid psychosocial assessment

Choosing appropriate instruments for a comprehensive psychosocial assessment is important —well-established, valid and reliable tools are preferred.

If organisations develop in-house instruments, there is a need to substantiate their efficacy and psychometric properties before granting them preferred status. The selected questionnaires should cover psychosocial domains that impact recovery and RTW — such as passive coping, low pain self-efficacy and unhelpful work perceptions. For many of the domains (such as fear of movement) multiple assessment questionnaires can be used.

There are many validated tools available. Widely used assessment tools include:

•Depression, Anxiety, Stress Score (DASS21): Measures symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress.

•Orebro Musculoskeletal Pain Screening Questionnaire (full) if ÖMPSQ-SF has not already been employed as triage screening tool.

•Brief Pain Inventory (BPI): Assesses pain severity and interference with daily activities.

•Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ): Evaluates a person’s confidence in performing activities despite pain.

•Pain Catastrophising Scale (PCS): Assesses the extent of catastrophic (or distressing) thinking related to pain.

•Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK): Measures fear of movement or (re)injury.

•Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire (FABQ): Quantifies beliefs about the effect of physical activity and work on pain.

•Abilita Rehabilitation Index (ARI.MSI & ARI.PI): comprehensive questionnaire reporting results in biopsychosocial domains to guide intervention.4

These tools provide valuable insights into the psychosocial factors influencing an individual's pain experience, disability level and potential barriers to recovery and RTW.