Psychometric Testing of the Chinese Version of the Self-care of Heart Failure Index Version 7.2

Background Self-care is essential in patients with heart failure (HF). Objective Our objective was to test psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Self-care of Heart Failure Index version 7.2 (SCHFI v7.2-C). Methods The English version of SCHFI v7.2 was translated into Chinese using the modified Brislin translation model. Psychometric tests of the SCHFI v7.2-C were performed in 320 Chinese patients with HF. Content validity, confirmatory factor analysis, convergent validity, concurrent validity, discriminant validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability were examined to determine validity and reliability of the questionnaire. Validity and reliability were assessed for the self-care maintenance, symptom perception, and self-care management scales. SPSS 25.0 and Mplus 8.3 were used for data analysis. Results Mean (SD) age of the sample was 61.2 (14.20) years. Scale content validity index ranged from 0.93 to 0.97 across the 3 scales. Results of confirmatory factor analysis supported structural validity of the 3 scales. Self-care was significantly associated with quality of life, and those with more HF experience had significantly better self-care than those with less experience, supporting construct validity. The SCHFI v7.2-C was associated with the 12-item European Heart Failure Self-care Behavior Scale. Cronbach α coefficients for the self-care maintenance, symptom perception, and self-care management scales were 0.79, 0.89, and 0.77, respectively; their test-retest reliability was 0.76, 0.78, and 0.75, respectively. Conclusion The SCHFI v7.2-C is a valid and reliable instrument that can be used in Chinese patients with HF.