Preparation and Planning for Future Care in the Deep South: Adapting a Validated Tool for Cultural Sensitivity

Background and objectives: This study describes the adaptation and validation of Sörensen et al. (2017)'s preparation for future care (PFC) scale with diverse samples including rural dwelling African Americans and certified nursing assistants (CNAs), and subsequent psychometric development.

Research design and methods: Responses to the five-subscale PFC survey from 33 rural African American men across 12 months and cognitive interviews with a subset of 12 of these men are described. Psychometric refinement included descriptive qualitative analyses of consultations with experienced lay research advisors (N = 4 and N = 7) regarding potential changes to the PFC and a confirmatory factor analysis of the resultant scale (N = 138).

Results: Cognitive interviews with rural African American men revealed difficulty understanding Eurocentric questions. Emergent themes included emotional avoidance of planning, considerations of nursing homes and possible care providers, and coping strategies. In two consultation meetings, trained lay research advisors recommended language modifications to the original questions and response options. Factor analyzing the resultant scale revealed support for the original subscale constructs (acceptable fit: χ2 = 205.03, df = 124, p < .001; root mean square error of approximation = .069 [.052-.085]; comparative fit index = .93; Tucker-Lewis index = .91).

Discussion and implications: PFC and engagement in advance care planning is uncommon among African Americans, possibly due to distrust of and lack of cultural competency among health care professionals. The resulting tool and response options may be used as an interview guide/survey with African Americans to gain understanding about their preparation for future health care needs.