RESUMO
OBJECTIVES: The Family Health Scale is a new instrument for evaluating family health. The instrument is reported as valid and reliable in investigating family health among different types of adult family members. This study aimed to translate the Family Health Scale into Danish and investigate its validity and reliability in families with a family member affected by chronic or serious illness. DATA SOURCES: Translation was performed through forward and backward bilingual practice consisting of 10 steps. A cross-sectional study included 406 participants, of whom 94 also participated in a follow-up study within 3 weeks for the test-retest. Content validity was examined by conducting cognitive interviews with nine family members. Internal consistency reliability was assessed using Cronbach α. The test-retest reliability was evaluated using intraclass correlation coefficients. Model fit was assessed using confirmatory factor analysis. CONCLUSION: The Family Health Scale demonstrated good content validity and a moderate model fit. Both Internal consistency reliability and test-retest reliability were satisfying. Cronbach α ranged from 0.73 to 0.89, while the intraclass correlation coefficient value was 0.88. The confirmatory factor analysis estimated a satisfying model fit, with an acceptable root-mean-square error of 0.076 and a moderate comparative fit index of 0.794. IMPLICATION FOR NURSING PRACTICE: The Family Health Scale instrument has the potential to identify vulnerable families or families affected by chronic or serious illnesses, such as cancer. The assessment tool can consequently be used to target interventions to promote family health and improve the health of both the individual and his/her family.