SWAHILI TRANSLATION AND VALIDITY STUDY OF THE COHEN-HOBERMAN INVENTORY OF PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS FOR CONGOLESE REFUGEES

L. Walton¹, R. Hakim¹, V. Raigangar², J. Schwartz¹, N. Zaaeed³, J. Kibet⁴, S. Neff Futrell¹, R.N. Shrestha⁵, M. Naseer Butt⁶

¹University of Scranton, Physical Therapy, Scranton, United States, ²University of Brighton, Physical Therapy, Brighton, United Kingdom, ³State University of New York (SUNY) Oswego, Public Health, Syracuse, United States, ⁴Amref International University, Physical Therapy, Nairobi, Kenya, ⁵Nepal and Bangladeshi Health Professions in Savaar, Savaar, Nepal, ⁶Muzaffarabad Physical Rehabilitation Centre, Muzaffarabad (AJ&K), Pakistan

Background: Refugees experience severe toxic stress and trauma associated with mental and physical symptom prevalence at a rate higher than any other vulnerable population, placing them at risk for chronic health conditions and decreased health related quality of life. The Cohen-Hoberman Inventory of Physical Symptoms (CHIPS) has been translated for the general population, but there is, currently, no validated Swahili translation for utilization with refugee populations.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to translate and validate a Swahili Version of CHIPS for utilization in community-based rehabilitation programs for Swahili Speaking Congolese Refugees.

Methods: Forward and back translations of the CHIPS, English to Swahili Language, were completed by an official translator and evaluated by three content experts who were fluent in both English and Swahili Language and have experience working with Congolese Refugees to establish content validity, internal consistency, and expert consensus on construct acceptability.Internal Consistency was measured utilizing a rubric with three contstructs, including: 12 neurogenic stress response items, 11 somatic stress response items, and 9 visceral stress response items.Data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0 calculation of Cronbach’s Alpha for individual and overall construct internal consistency and Kappa Statistic to test agreement between content experts.

Results: The Cohen-Hoberman Inventory of Physical Symptoms (CHIPS) was shown to have strong content validity and good, overall, internal consistency (Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.93) and inter-rater reliability (ICC= 0.91). Kappa Statistic exhibited 94% agreement between reviewers with scores of “MET” or “EXCEEDED” expected acceptable representation for each identified scale construct between all three reviewers.

Conclusions: The Swahili Translated Version of the Cohen-Hoberman Inventory of Physical Symptoms exhibited strong content validity, internal consistency, inter-rater reliability and expert consensus regarding acceptable construct criteria for utilization in the Congolese Refugee Community.Future research should include a test-retest reliability with the Congolese Refugee Community

Implications: The Swahili Translated Version of CHIPS may be used in community-based rehabilitation programs to provide baseline and outcome measurements of physical symptoms related to PT diagnosis, prognosis, and outcomes for refugee health programs.In addition, translation of important validated instruments for use in community-based physical therapy programs are vital to contribute to health equity in vulnerable populations and for the advancement of the physical therapy profession.

Funding acknowledgements: We would like to acknowledge the University of Scranton's Faculty Research Grant that funded and supported this research.

Keywords:
Swahili Language Translation
Cohen-Hoberman Inventory of Physical Symptoms (CHIPS)
Community-Based Refugee Health Program

Topics:
Community based rehabilitation
Disaster management
Globalisation: health systems, policies & strategies

Did this work require ethics approval? Yes

Institution: University of Scranton

Committee: DRB Committee in the Panuska College of Professional Studies

Ethics number: 13711