Measures in the day hospital. I. The global assessment of functioning scale.

This clinical study explored the use of the Global Assessment of Functioning Scale (GAF Scale) in a day hospital setting. In general, the GAF Scale was found to be of use in categorizing patients and in detecting change from admission to discharge. However, changes in GAF Scale scores may lack clinical significance, and moreover, there was little evidence of concurrent validity. Implications for the use of the GAF Scale in day hospitals were discussed.