Self assessment
Self assessment
Self-assessment in frailty refers to the use of structured tools that allow individuals—often older adults or their carers—to reflect on and report their own health status, functional ability, and risks associated with frailty.
These tools are designed to:
- Identify early signs of frailty
- Support proactive care planning
- Enable person-centred conversations
- Reduce reliance on clinician-only assessments
They are especially useful in community settings, during remote reviews, or as part of pre-assessment packs for annual frailty reviews
The most commonly used self-assessment tools include:
- PRISMA-7: A 7-question screening tool where a score of 3 or more suggests frailty. It is simple, validated, and widely used in both clinical and self-assessment contexts.
- FiND – Frail Non-Disabled Questionnaire: A brief self-assessment tool designed to differentiate frailty from disability.
PRISMA 7
The PRISMA-7 is a frailty screening questionnaire made up of 7 yes/no questions that help identify older adults (usually aged 65+) who may be frail and need further assessment. 3 or more positive answers is indicative of frailty.
Prisma 7 Questions to ask:
1. Are you more than 85 years?
2. Are you Male?
3. In general do you have any health problems that require you to limit your
activities?
4. Do you need someone to help you on a regular basis?
5. In general do you have any health problems that require you to stay at
home?
6. In case of need, can you count on someone close to you?
7. Do you regularly use a stick, walker or wheelchair to get about?
This is a self-completion questionnaire; however you will need to assist patients for who English is not a first language and those who may not be able to read the questions or write answers. Please do not answer questions on a patient’s behalf or influence their answers, but allow them to answer themselves. (PRISMA-Frailty-Assessment-1.pdf)
FiND – Frail Non-Disabled Questionnaire
A brief self-assessment tool designed to differentiate frailty from disability.
What it asks:
– Includes questions on physical function (e.g., ability to walk 400m or climb stairs) and symptoms affecting daily life.
– Scoring: Focuses on identifying deficits that contribute to frailty rather than disability.
– Risks it identifies: Physical limitations and early signs of frailty.
– Use in the NHS: Designed for self-completion by the general public; takes less than five minutes to administer
Frail non-Disabled” (FiND) questionnaire
From: Determinants of frailty in primary care patients with COPD: the Greek UNLOCK study
| Domain | Questions | Answers | Score |
| Disability | A. Have you any difficulties at walking 400 m? | a. No or some difficulties | 0 |
| b. A lot of difficulties or unable | 1 | ||
| B. Have you any difficulties at climbing up a flight of stairs? | a. No or some difficulties | 0 | |
| b. A lot of difficulties or unable | 1 | ||
| Frailty | C. During the last year, have you involuntarily lost more than 4.5 kg? | a. No | 0 |
| b. Yes | 1 | ||
| D. How often in the last week did you feel than everything you did was an effort or that you could not get going? | a. Rarely or sometime (twice or less/week) | 0 | |
| b. Often or almost always (3 or more times per week) | 1 | ||
| E. Which is your level of physical activity? | a. Regular physical activity (at least 2–4 h per week) | 0 | |
| b. None or mainly sedentary | 1 |
Items A and B define disability domains and items C, D and E define frailty domains. If A + B ≥ 1, the individual is considered as “disabled”. If A + B = 0 and C + D + E ≥ 1, the individual is considered as “frail”. Participants reporting no mobility disability as well as no frailty criterion e.g. If A + B + C + D + E = 0, are considered as “robust” (non-frail). Subjects positive for disability could also have positive frailty domains
Useful links: