ABSTRACT
Objective
Perform cross-cultural validation of the Portuguese version (Brazil) CONNECT – A care continuity as mental health services, in a sample of 150 individuals with severe mental disorders.
Methods
A construct validation was performed using the Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The agreement was determined by Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). It was also performed a correlation analysis between the items of the scale, subscales and general scale.
Results
Respondents had an average age of 48.91 years, most were men (60%) diagnosed with schizophrenia (70.7%). The ICC found was good and almost perfect in 7 of the 9 subscales, the correlation between subscales and the overall scale was significant in all tested subscales. The PCA explained 66.29% of the variance of all scale through nine factors.
Conclusion
PCA demonstrated a structure corresponding to the original structure of the scale. By the time the CONNECT is the only assessment tool of continuity of care of these patients is adapted to the Brazilian context. The results of this study show that the Brazilian version of CONNECT scale can be used safely.
Validation study; continuity of patient care; mental health services