PAM - Patient Activation Measure

The Patient Activation Measure is a valid, highly reliable, unidimensional, probabilistic Guttman-like scale that reflects a developmental model of activation.

Activation appears to involve four stages:

• (1) believing the patient role is important,
• (2) having the confidence and knowledge necessary to take action,
• (3) actually taking action to maintain and improve one’s health, and
• (4) staying the course even under stress. The measure has good psychometric properties indicating that it can be used at the individual patient level to tailor intervention and assess changes.