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- Talk
- 20/09/2022
- UK
Development of a Language Free Universal Outcome Tool for Upper Limb Assessment in Children (VisULiM Kids)
Description
This presentation features Jamie Dornan discussing the development of a language-free outcome tool for assessing upper limb functionality in children, titled VisULim Kids. The tool addresses significant barriers to using existing outcome measures for children, particularly those who are neuro-diverse or do not communicate verbally. Dornan narrates the journey of creating this tool, which stemmed from challenges faced during clinical work in Cambodia, highlighting issues with translation and engagement with children. The presentation details the transition from standard text measures to a more visually appealing comic book format, developed in collaboration with a comic book company, which was designed with input from child advisory groups to ensure it was engaging to young users.
The effectiveness of VisULim Kids was validated through trials with children aged 5 to 17, comparing their preferences for the visual tool against traditional text-based methods. Results indicated strong engagement, with 70% preferring the visual format, and 92% confirming that it posed equivalent questions to the text version. Dornan concludes by emphasizing the potential for this tool to support non-verbal communication in a global context and the need for further validation and adaptation to modern circumstances. Acknowledgments are given to the BSSH for funding and to the comic company for their contributions.