Validating the Health Communication Assessment Tool© (HCAT)

• We assessed the Health Communication Assessment Tool© (HCAT) with international and interprofessional health care educators.
• Participants were health care faculty who teach using clinical simulation.
• The study found that the HCAT demonstrated international applicability.
• Findings further supported the validity and reliability of the HCAT.

BackgroundClinical simulations provide an opportunity to assess students' patient-centered communication. The purpose of this study was to further validate the Health Communication Assessment Tool© (HCAT) with international and interprofessional health care educators.MethodsA total of 218 educators watched an online video of a simulation and assessed a student's communication behaviors using the HCAT.ResultsExploratory factor analysis revealed a five-factor model. The average intraclass correlation of these factors was high (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] = 0.99), whereas the single-measure consistency ICC was moderate (ICC = 0.41).ConclusionsAnalysis of the HCAT using interprofessional, international simulation educators provided further evidence of the instrument's reliability and validity.