Functional Independence Measure

The Functional Independence Measure (FIM) is an assessment tool that aims to evaluate the functional status of patients throughout the rehabilitation process following a stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury or cancer.^[1] Its area of use can include skilled nursing facilities and hospitals aimed at acute, sub-acute and rehabilitation care. Performed on admission to and departure from a rehabilitation hospital, it serves as a consistent data collection tool for the comparison of rehabilitation outcomes across the health care continuum.^[1] Furthermore, it aims to allow clinicians to track changes in the functional status of patients from the onset of rehab care through discharge and follow-up. The FIM’s assessment of degree of disability depends on the patient’s score in 18 categories, focusing on motor and cognitive function. Each category or item is rated on a 7-point scale (1 = <25% independence; total assistance required, 7 = 100% independence).^[1][2] As such, FIM scores may be interpreted to indicate level of independence or level of burden of care. The scale is used to assess how well a person can carry out basic activities of daily living and thus how dependent he or she will be on help from others.^[1] Other areas assessed include the physical like how well patients move and walk, and the cognitive, how well they interact with others, communicate, and process information.^[2] FIM was originally made for people who had had strokes, but is used to assess disability in other cases as well.^[2]

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