Table 2 Clinical utility questions and responses (N = 198)

Core clinical utility questions

Please rate the overall ease of use of the diagnostic guidelines with respect to this patient:

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 0

13 (6.6%)

123 (62.1%)

62 (31.3%)

185 (93.4%)

Please rate the overall goodness of fit or accuracy of the diagnostic guidelines with respect to this patient:

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 0

11 (5.6%)

121 (61.1%)

66 (33.3%)

187 (94.4%)

Please rate the extent to which the diagnostic guidelines were clear and understandable overall as applied to this patient:

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 0

7 (3.5%)

113 (57.1%)

78 (39.4%)

191 (96.5%)

Implementation characteristics

Which of the following statements best describes your evaluation of the level of detail and specificity of the essential features for the diagnosis or diagnoses that you applied to this patient?

 Insufficient:

About the right amount:

Too much:

 1 (0.5%)

158 (79.8%)

39 (19.7%)

Please rate the extent to which the guidelines imposed assessment requirements that were difficult to apply to this patient (e.g., requirements that rely too much on the patient’s memory of remote events or the patient’s ability to report temporal relationships between symptoms):

 Very difficult:

Somewhat difficult:

Quite easy:

Extremely easy:

Quite + extremely easy:

 1 (0.5%)

23 (11.6%)

121 (61.1%)

53 (26.8%)

174 (87.9%)

How would you describe the amount of time that it took you to apply all of the Essential Features to this patient for the diagnosis or diagnoses that you selected, in comparison to your usual clinical practice?

  Much longer:

Somewhat longer:

About the same:

Shorter:

  0

6 (3.0%)

150 (75.8%)

42 (21.2%)

Specific sections

Please rate the extent to which the description of the boundary between disorder and normality contained in the guidelines was useful as applied to this patient:

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 2 (1.0%)

19 (9.6%)

97 (49.0%)

80 (40.4%)

177 (89.4%)

Please rate the extent to which the description of the boundary between this patient’s disorder and other disorders (section on differential diagnosis) was useful as applied to this patient:

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 2 (1.0%)

14 (7.1%)

105 (53.0%)

77 (38.9%)

182 (91.9%)

Specific uses

How useful would the diagnostic guidelines be in helping you to select a treatment for this patient?

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 5 (2.5%)

42 (21.2%)

112 (56.6%)

39 (19.7%)

151 (76.3%)

How useful would the diagnostic guidelines be in helping you to assess this patient’s prognosis?

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 3 (1.5%)

46 (23.2%)

107 (54.0%)

42 (21.2%)

149 (75.3%)

How useful would the diagnostic guidelines be in helping you to communicate about this patient with a colleague or other health care professional?

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 2 (1.0%)

48 (24.2%)

94 (47.5%)

54 (27.3%)

148 (74.7%)

How useful would the diagnostic guidelines be in helping you to educate this patient and/or family about his or her condition?

 Not at all:

Somewhat:

Quite:

Extremely:

Quite + extremely:

 3 (1.5%)

51 (25.8%)

98 (49.5%)

46 (23.2%)

144 (72.7%)