The Use of Goal Attainment Scaling to Facilitate and Assess Individualized Change in a Wellness Intervention for Women With Fibromyalgia Syndrome

Abstract

Purpose: The authors examined goal achievement over an 8-month period in women with fibromyalgia participating in a holistic health promotion intervention using Goal Attainment Scaling. Design: Descriptive. Methods: Goal attainment was assessed by interviews at five points: baseline (retrospectively), immediately after the 8-week classes, at the middle and end of the telephone support period, and 3 months later. Findings: The percentage of women who attained or exceeded their goals in the four health promotion areas of Lifestyle Adjustment, Physical Activity, Nutrition, and Stress Management increased from between 15% and 26% at the end of the classes to between 58% and 76% at the end of the telephone support period. Although scores declined somewhat in the following 3 months, at least 60% of the women continued to report behaviors at or above their goal level in all areas except Physical Activity. Conclusions: Goal Attainment Scaling, an individually determined measure of change, can effectively capture behavioral changes associated with a holistic health promotion intervention. A nurse facilitator, who not only understood the need for specific, measurable GAS but was also able to encourage and support women’s identification of goals that were meaningful to them, was key to the positive findings observed here.