Content Validity Testing of the Maternal Fetal Triage Index

ObjectiveTo describe the development and content validity testing of the Maternal Fetal Triage Index (MFTI), a standardized tool for obstetric triage. DesignOnline survey. ParticipantsParticipants included 15 registered nurses, 15 certified nurse-midwives, and 15 physicians from across the United States who provided maternity care. MethodsA convenience sample of experienced clinicians was used as content validators for the MFTI. An item content validity index (I-CVI) was computed for the tool's items and a scale content validity index (S-CVI) was computed for the tool's scale based on the responses submitted via the online survey. Two rounds of content validation occurred. ResultsIn the first round of testing, a total of 12 of 61 items in the MFTI did not meet the I-CVI threshold of greater than 0.78 because of disagreement about clinical condition (75%) or priority level placement (25%). In the second round of testing, all but 3 of the 69 content items in the revised version of the MFTI had I-CVI thresholds greater than 0.78. These 3 items were related to vital sign values. The overall S-CVI score calculated for Round 2 only was 0.95, which was greater than the threshold of 0.90. ConclusionThe results of the content validity testing of multidisciplinary validators suggest that the MFTI is a valid tool for use in obstetric triage and evaluation settings.