Make New Translations

Collaborate with HealthMeasures

If you would like to create a new translation, you will need to work with the HealthMeasures Translations team. The Department of Medical Social Sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine is currently charged with managing the scientific activity surrounding HealthMeasures translations. You will work with our team throughout the translation process. 

Use Professional Translators

HealthMeasures does not directly translate its measures into other languages. Instead, new translations are conducted by professional translators or by a group of researchers who are native speakers of the target language and have translation expertise. Regardless of who performs the translation, the methodology, the expectations for documenting the various steps of the translation, and the quality and approval review process are the same. 

Get Permission to Translate 

For new translations, we issue a letter of permission to translate specifying the name(s) of the measure(s) that can be translated and into which language(s). The permission to translate is valid for six months and can be renewed.  We will also provide a quote for the Quality and Harmonization Review fee and a license agreement. After the license agreement is fully executed, we will provide item definitions, already translated items, other documentation to facilitate accurate translation, and an invoice to pay the Quality and Harmonization Review fee.  

Translation Methodology 

PROMIS®, Neuro-QoL™ and NIH Toolbox® have adopted the FACIT Translation Methodology (see Eremenco et al, 2005) for patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures. It consists of an iterative process of forward and back-translation, multiple reviews, harmonization across languages, and cognitive debriefing with a sample of the target population. Additionally, the approach to translation is universal, which means we aim for language versions that are appropriate for more than one country, rather than country-specific versions of each language. The vendor or group in charge of the translation will need to comply with this approach. Descriptions of consensus-based best practices in translation methods are available (See Eremenco et al, 2018 for PRO measures and McKown et al, 2020 for observer-reported outcome, clinician-reported outcome, and performance outcome measures). 

For new translations, we conduct a quality review of each translation and verify harmonization across languages for a fee (see Fees). The review focuses on verifying the accuracy of the translation, consistency in the translation of similar items within the item bank, consistency with previous translations, harmonization with other languages, and whether the documentation of the decision-making process is complete. This includes reviewing the cognitive debriefing report. 

Country-Specific Norms (Optional)

HealthMeasures were developed so that the mean score (T=50) is the mean for the general population of English speakers in the United States. Sometimes researchers would like to recalibrate measures so that the mean score reflects the general population in another country. This equates to changing how a HealthMeasure is scored. We do not support recalibrating measures for a specific population or language. Having a common metric across samples and languages is one of the unique benefits of using HealthMeasures. This is made possible by using a single set of calibrations. All HealthMeasures in all languages are scored in the same way. 

Instead, we support calculating population or country-specific norms. For example, the mean PROMIS Anxiety score in the United States is 50. The mean PROMIS Anxiety score in a different country may be 48. This is a country-specific norm. Scores remain interpretable (e.g.,in a country with a country-specific norm of 48, a study sample with a mean score of 53 is interpreted as ½ standard deviation above the population mean [53-48=5])). Calculating population or country-specific norms is not a required step in producing a translation. 

Given evidence of differential item functioning (DIF) by language, however, we support the adoption of country-specific calibrations for those particular items showing non-trivial DIF. We further support research into measurement challenges and support research modifications (e.g., removing an item) to improve a measure’s performance. 

Quality Review and Harmonization Fee

For new translations, we conduct a quality review of each translation and verify harmonization across languages. The review fee is estimated based on a per hour rate and the number of items and languages to translate. Time for preparing materials for new translations (i.e., cross-referencing measures, gathering items already translated for each language, and selecting relevant item definitions) is also included. All costs are submitted in a quote prior to service and included in the license agreement.