BI - Barthel Index
The Barthel Index (BI) consists of 10 items that measure a person’s daily functioning, particularly the activities of daily living (ADL) and mobility. The items include feeding, transfers from bed to wheelchair and to and from a toilet, grooming, walking on a level surface, going up and down stairs, dressing, continence of bowels and bladder. The BI can be used to determine a baseline level of functioning and can be used to monitor improvements in activities of daily living over time.
The BI was developed by Mahoney and Barthel in 1965 and is now widely used in rehabilitation. 10 activities are scored, and the values are added to give a total score from 0 (totally dependent) to 100 (completely independent).
A modified version of the BI has been introduced (Colin et al, 1988). The modified scale gives a maximum score of 20. Scores ranging from 0 to 2 or 3 for each activity.
The BI can be derived from the UK FIM+/-FAM, and NPDS/NPDS-H by means of a computerised algorithm within the UKROC software. Papers describing the conversion algorithms are listed below
Publications
- Collin C, Wade DT, Davies S, Horne V, The Barthel Index, Disability and Rehabilitation 2008, 10:2 61-63
- Mahoney FI, Barthel D, Functional Evaluation: The Barthel Index (PDF, 21kb), Maryland State Medical Journal 1965;14, 56-61
Translation to Barthel index
- Nyein K, McMichael L, Turner-Stokes L.,Can a Barthel Index be derived from the FIM? Clinical Rehabilitation 1999; 13: 56-63
- Turner-Stokes L. Williams H, Howley D, Jackson D., Can the Northwick Park Dependency Scale be translated to a Barthel Index?, Clinical Rehabilitation 2010; 24 (12):1112-1120
- Turner-Stokes L. Williams H, Rose H, Harris S, Jackson D., Deriving a Barthel Index from the Northwick Park Dependency Scale and the Functional Independence measure – are they equivalent?, Clinical Rehabilitation 2010; 24 (12):1121-1126