Title of Assessment
Barthel
Author(s)
Barthel, D.W. & Mahoney, F.I.
Year of Publication/Publisher
1965, Maryland State Medical Journal
Identify Type of Assessment
Standardized, Ordinal Scale
Cost & How to Access Assessment
Free!
https://www.sralab.org/sites/default/files/2017-07/barthel.pdf
Population
Any age/ person who can answer this assessment with minimal verbal assistance, stroke patients, any affected mobility diagnoses. Any diagnoses affecting ADL’s/ mobility.
Appropriate Settings
Home health, Acute care, Outpatient
Purpose of Assessment & Function(s)/Area(s) Assessed
The purpose of this assessment is to measure and score performance of activities of daily living and mobility. The 10 items scored are: feeding, bathing, grooming, dressing, bowel control, bladder control, toileting, chair transfer, ambulation, and stair climbing.
Administration
- Takes less than 5 minutes
- It is recommended that you re-administer it every 10 treatment days, or every 30 calendar days. (whichever one comes first).
User Qualifications
No previous training is required to administer.
Materials Required
The Barthel Assessment and a writing utensil
Scoring Procedure
Assessment is scored by adding up totals in each category.
- 0-20: total dependency
- 21-60: severe dependency
- 61-90: moderate dependency
- 91-99: slight dependency
- 100: independence
Prediction of Independence:
- 0-40: Unlikely to go home and are dependent in ADLs and mobility
- 60=Pivotal score at which patients transition from being dependent to assisted independence
- 60-80: If they are living alone, they are likely to require community services to help them cope
- >85: They are likely to be discharged to community living. They are independent in transfers and can walk or use a wheelchair independently.
Psychometrics/Standardization
Test-retest reliability is good/excellent.
Strengths & Weaknesses of Assessment
Strengths: Simple, accessible, interdisciplinary, can be given over the telephone if needed.
Weaknesses: Can potentially be too broad.
References
Mahoney FI, Barthel D. “Functional evaluation: the Barthel Index.” Maryland State Med Journal 1965;14:56-61. Used with permission.