Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of Fear of Hospitalization Scale in Patients Undergoing Emergency Surgery

Purpose. This study was designed to characterize the psychometric properties of the Persian version of Fear of Hospitalization Scale (P-FHS). Design and Methods. In order to evaluate the validity and reliability of the translated scale, a cross-sectional design was employed. Ten experts evaluated the content validity of Fear of Hospitalization Scale (FHS) after it had been back-translated into Persian. With 612 patients having emergency surgery, construct validity was assessed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The STROBE checklist for cross-sectional studies was followed. Findings. The results of EFA (n = 306) showed that fear of hospitalization had three factors. These three factors accounted for 45.28% of the total variance. Also, these factors were confirmed by CFA (n = 306) (root-mean-square error of approximation = (90% confidence interval) = 0.050 (0.041, 0.058), goodness-of-fit index = 0.945, comparative fit index = 0.968, non-normal fit index = 0.948, incremental fit index = 0.968, Tucker–Lewis index = 0.959). The coefficients of Cronbach’s alpha, McDonald’s omega, composite reliability, and maximum reliability for all three factors were greater than 0.7, demonstrating satisfied internal consistency. Practice Implication. According to the published results, the P-FHS is effective at measuring hospitalization anxiety in patients undergoing emergency surgery. It is advised that nurses in Iranian culture use a legitimate and trustworthy technique to pinpoint the causes of hospitalization anxiety in patients undergoing emergency surgery to give optimal care.