We all use individual outcome measures for our own disciplines, but the SAQOL-39g is our core team outcome measure because we just find that it covers so much relevant information regarding functional impact for SALT, Physio, OT and Psych.
We collect a pre and post SAQOL-39g on all of our patients and we then report the results each quarter via the use of a pre and post SAQOL-39g bar graph to demonstrate our team’s effectiveness (as part of our ongoing funding, we have to be heavily outcome focused).
The SAQOL-39g has changed our clinical practice – I think the reason it is used so effectively is its accessibility for our patients and their carers. It is comprehensive but it manages to do it sensitively, without being too obtrusive. Our caseload is often only a few days post-Stroke and so only just in the very early stages of dealing with the shock of the coming to terms with an acute Stroke and we find that SAQOL-39g helps to open up those conversations about the impact of their Stroke, and direct us towards very functional goals for their 6 weeks involvement with us. This way the measure makes a difference to the lives of our patients.”
— Carys Moss – Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, NHS
