The CORE Outcome Measure (CORE-OM)

This is a client self-report questionnaire designed to be administered before and after therapy. The client is asked to respond to 34 questions about how they have been feeling over the last week, using a 5-point scale ranging from 'not at all' to 'most or all of the time'. The 34 items of the measure cover four dimensions:

• Subjective well-being
• Problems/symptoms
• Life functioning
• Risk/harm

The responses are designed to be averaged by the practitioner to produce a mean score to indicate the level of current psychological global distress (from 'healthy' to 'severe'). The questionnaire is repeated after the last session of treatment; comparison of the pre-and post-therapy scores offers a measure of 'outcome' (i.e. whether or not the client's level of distress has changed, and by how much).
The CORE Outcome Measure (CORE-OM) was conceived as a non-proprietary measure of psychological distress. Crucially, it was informed by feedback from practitioners as to what they considered to be important to include. Since its development the CORE-OM has been validated with samples from the general population, NHS primary and secondary care, and in older adults.
Two practitioner-completed forms complement the CORE-OM by providing contextual information.

● The Therapy Assessment Form helps to profile the client, their presenting problems/concerns and their pathway into therapy.

● The End of Therapy Form helps to chart the client's pathway through and out of therapy, alongside a range of subjective outcome assessments.

The use of CORE Therapy Assessment and End of Therapy Forms alongside the CORE-OM distinguishes CORE from standalone outcome measures by routinely adding critical contextual detail on the client and the therapy process.

How is CORE used?