Distress Thermometer for adult patients with diverse sex development
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Distress Thermometer as a screening tool in multidisciplinary clinics for people affected by diverse sex development (DSD)
IRAS ID
146186
Contact name
Lih-Mei Liao
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London (UCL)
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 30 days
Research summary
Diverse or disorders of sex development (DSD) is a set of rare genetic conditions affecting the development of the reproductive and sex organs. The physical and psychological effects complex. Throughout their lifespan, affected people are faced with a range of challenging psychosocial issues surrounding their condition.
It is not always obvious to care providers how distressed patients feel when they present in clinic. The use of a simple self-rating scale could help clinicians to pick up patient distress more consistently. Where appropriate, they can have a useful conversation with the patient about his/her worries, and help them decide whether a referral for psychological support or other services was warranted.
The Distress Thermometer (DT) is such a self-report distress screening method, whereby the patient puts a mark along a 'thermometer' with 0 at the bottom and 10 at the top, to indicate current distress. First developed for cancer services, the DT has been used extensively in outpatient clinics, both in the UK and elsewhere, across diverse social, economic, educational, ethnic, age and clinical groups. Its value as a tracker of emotional distress - to enable doctors and nurses to know from appointment to appointment how the patient is doing - is generally well received. In our DSD clinics, we have adapted the DT for routine clinical use with the same aim - to facilitate conversation between doctor and patient so to identify more consistently patient concerns.
However, is a single rating sensitive and accurate enough to assess DSD distress? Ideally, we should first compare it with more detailed assessments. If the DT is just as good as the more detailed measures, such as the GAD7 and PHQ9 routinely used in primary care, then we can achieve the same aim whilst saving time and effort for doctors and patients.
REC name
London - City & East Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/2149
Date of REC Opinion
20 Dec 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion