Introduction to validation of patient reported outcome measures
Graduate School of Health and Medical Sciences at University of Copenhagen
This is a generic course. This means that the course is reserved for PhD students at the Graduate School of Health and Medical Sciences at UCPH.
Anyone can apply for the course, but if you are not a PhD student at the Graduate School, you will be placed on the waiting list until enrollment deadline. After the enrollment deadline, available seats will be allocated to the waiting list.
The course is free of charge for PhD students at Danish universities (except Copenhagen Business School), and for PhD students at NorDoc member faculties. All other participants must pay the course fee.
Learning objectives
A student who has met the objectives of the course will be able to:
1. Know the basic principles for scale validation.
2. Compute simple indicators of patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) validity.
3. Do a simple confirmatory factor analysis to evaluate the quality of PROMS.
Content
The course introduces simple methods validation of index scales that summarize information from several items. The course covers classical psychometrics, confirmatory factor analysis, and methods for detection of differential item functioning. The computer exercises use SAS or R, but most of the methods discussed are relatively simple and can be done using SPSS or Stata. The course consists of ten hours of classroom teaching supplemented by online elements.
Illustrative examples are drawn from existing PROMS used in clinical research.
Participants
Ph.D.-students and researchers within medicine, public health, epidemiology, sociology, and psychology. A very basic knowledge of statistics will be assumed.
Relevance to graduate programmes
The course is relevant to PhD students from the following graduate programmes at the Graduate School of Health and Medical Sciences, UCPH:
All graduate programmes
Language
Danish or English
Form
A mixture of lectures and computer exercise. A mandatory exercise is handed out on the last day. Participants who bring relevant data of their own can do a compulsory exercise based on these, if the course director approves this. The mandatory exercise needs to be handed in by e-mail to the course secretary later than June 21 (two weeks after the last day on the course). Participants should bring their own laptop with SAS or R installed.
Course director
Associate professor Karl Bang Christensen, Section of Biostatistics, kach@sund.ku.dk
Teachers
Associate professor Karl Bang Christensen, and guest teachers.
Dates
15 - 16 June 2026, both days 9-16.
Course location
CSS
Registration
Please register before 15 May 2026
Seats to PhD students from other Danish universities will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis and according to the applicable rules. Applications from other participants will be considered after the last day of enrolment.
Note: All applicants are asked to submit invoice details in case of no-show, late cancellation or obligation to pay the course fee (typically non-PhD students). If you are a PhD student, your participation in the course must be in agreement with your principal supervisor.