Patient reported outcome measures: what is their importance?

The broad concept of patient reported outcome measures (PROM) includes measurements reported by those who have a disease. These cover a spectrum that ranges from evaluating symptoms, adherence to treatment, functional capacity, health status and quality of life to quality of care aspects.1 In the mid 1970s a movement began to include the perspective of the patient as part of the necessary assessments to determine the health of people. In the beginning, this concern arose because of differences between administrators and those who made decisions regarding health.2 The medical center was supposed to be a patient center environment, taking into account the family context. PROM is a journey from the administrative to the true essence of clinical work. It is also an ethical dimension that attempts to incorporate the patient’s perspective in assessing health.3 Therefore, at least two fundamental questions arise: who can better assess the patient health and disease status and the changes they both suffer, and in the end, who makes decisions about the patient’s health?