Products Background

EpicRehab Function Sorts

• EpicRehab Function Sorts Overview
• Hand Function Sort Background
  The purpose of the EpicRehab Hand Function Sort (HFS) is to quantify ability to perform work tasks work tasks that involve the hands and upper extremities.
• Spinal Functional Sort Background
  The purpose of the EPIC Spinal Function Sort (SFS) is to quantify ability to perform work tasks that involve the spine and lower extremities.
• Perceived functional ability assessed with the spinal function sort: is it valid for European rehabilitation settings in patients with non-specific non-acute low back pain? [PDF]

Products in Spanish, Available from Matheson Development

The Spinal Function Sort (SFS), Hand Function Sort (HFS), and the Multidimensional Task Ability Profile (MTAP) are available in the Spanish language.

Spanish is the third most widely-spoken language in the world following Chinese and English, and the population of Spanish-speaking individuals continues to grow world-wide. Hispanics currently account for 16% of the total population in the United States and accounted for over half of the total population growth between 2000 and 2010. Hispanics are projected to comprise 30% of the population of the United States by 2050.

An important practical application of the Spanish language versions of these instruments concerns situations in which the patient speaks Spanish and the provider speaks only English. Instruments that have shown good reliability in more than one language can help bridge communication between providers and patients with language barriers. Each instrument can be administered by a non-Spanish-speaking therapist or physician to a monolingual Spanish-speaking client or patient. Additionally, because these instruments use drawings of persons performing tasks, patient-to-therapist communication is facilitated about nuances of their abilities and restrictions.

EPIC Lift Capacity Test

• Description of the ELC (at Matheson Development)
  The ELC is a six-stage progressive test of lift capacity developed by a team headed by Leonard Matheson, PhD, and is specifically designed to evaluate persons with medical impairment and disability.
• Citations to research published about the ELC
• ELC Demonstration
  Dr. Leonard Matheson demonstrates the use of the ELC test (YouTube video).
• Comparison: Progressive Isoinertial Life Evaluation, WEST Standard Evaluation, and EPIC Lift Capacity Test
  The Progressive Isoinertial Lift Evaluation (PILE) and the EPIC Lift Capacity (ELC) test were both based on the WEST Standard Evaluation (WSE) developed by Leonard N. Matheson, PhD, at Rancho Los Amigos Hospital in Downey, California, in the 1970s.
• Comparison Chart: ELC vs Others
  A chart (PDF) comparing the ELC to the IWS, Lechner, Blankenship, WSE, and PILE across multiple features.
• ELC Questions and Answers
  Certification and equipment
  ELC Test