Quality of care and service as perceived by adults with developmental disabilities, their parents, and primary caregivers.

How adults with developmental disabilities perceive quality of the care and service they receive was investigated and these perceptions compared with those of their parents and primary caregivers. The sample was 34 adults with developmental disabilities, one of their parents, and their primary caregiver, all from a small Swedish municipality. We adapted Quality From the Patient's Perspective by using simple words and fewer response choices. Results showed it was possible to assess how adults with developmental disabilities evaluated actual care and service conditions. Evaluations of the subjective importance ascribed to these conditions proved too difficult. A high degree of similarity was found in ratings of perceived reality of care and service conditions by the adults with developmental disabilities, their parents, and caregivers.