To preliminarily construct a patient-reported outcome(PRO) scale for pneumoconiosis under the disease-syndrome combination model using the Delphi method.To provide a basis for the development of a formal scale.

The framework of the PRO scale for pneumoconiosis was established under the disease-syndrome combination model.The scale item pool was drafted by the research team through literature analysis,interview,and derivation methods following group discussions.Two rounds of expert consultations were conducted using the Delphi method.The reliability and validity of the initial draft scale were tested.

The effective questionnaire recovery rates for the two rounds of consultations were 85% and 94%,respectively. The expert authority coefficients were 0.900 and 0.785,respectively.The average importance scores of items ranged from 2.29 to 4.76 and ranged from 3.35 to 4.82,respectively.The full score rates ranged from 0 to 82% and ranged from 18% to 82%, respectively. The Kendall's coordination coefficients were 0.415 and 0.243,respectively(both P<0.001).The coefficient of variation were ranged from 0.11 to 0.49 and ranged from 0.08 to 0.35,respectively.The item-level content validity indices ranged from 0.41 to 1.00 and ranged from 0.76 to 1.00,respectively.The average scale-level content validity indices were 0.87 and 0.97,respectively.The Cronbach's α coefficients for the total scale were 0.992 and 0.966,respectively.The Cronbach's α coefficients for the various domains ranged from 0.893 to 0.989 and ranged from 0.751 to 0.941,respectively.Ultimately,the initial draft of the pneumoconiosis PRO scale was established,which comprises 49 items across the physiological,psychological,social,and satisfaction domains.

The initial draft of the pneumoconiosis PRO scale was consistent with the disease characteristics of pneumoconiosis and could be used to evaluate the quality of life of pneumoconiosis patients.It could provide a scientific basis for the development of a formal scale and offer an appropriate evaluation tool for clinical research.