> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.getrivet.ca/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# WHODAS-12 — simple scoring and what the score means
> How to score the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 12-item version, what the six life domains cover, and how to read a functional-disability score.
The WHODAS-12 is the condition-agnostic measure of functional disability.
The same 12 items work whether the client's primary diagnosis is
depression, chronic pain, a substance-use disorder, or a long COVID
presentation — it measures how much the condition is impacting the
client's life, not what the condition is.
The full WHODAS 2.0 exists in 36-item and interview-administered versions.
Rivet uses the 12-item self-administered (S12) form because the brevity
fits in-session and the psychometrics hold up well for routine clinical
monitoring.
## What it measures
Disability across six life domains (two items each):
| Domain | Items |
| --------------- | ------ |
| Cognition | 3, 6 |
| Mobility | 1, 7 |
| Self-care | 8, 9 |
| Getting along | 10, 11 |
| Life activities | 2, 12 |
| Participation | 4, 5 |
The six domains map to the ICF (International Classification of
Functioning, Disability and Health), which makes the WHODAS the natural
choice when functional impairment is part of the formulation or when
documentation needs to align with a recognized framework.
Each item is rated 1–5 (None / Mild / Moderate / Severe / Extreme or
cannot do) looking back over the past 30 days.
## When to send it
* Intake when functional impairment is part of the picture
* Adjustment-disorder and chronic-illness mental-health work
* Disability-claim documentation — the WHO-endorsed instrument is often
accepted by insurers and CPP-Disability tribunals in Canada
* Pre/post for any treatment where functional improvement is the primary
outcome
* 4–12 week intervals during treatment
* Discharge — functional outcome documentation
## How Rivet scores it
Simple sum of all 12 items, range 12–60. Each item rated 1 (none) through
5 (extreme).
| Total | Band |
| ----- | ---------------------------- |
| 12–23 | No significant disability |
| 24–35 | Mild disability |
| 36–47 | Moderate disability |
| 48–60 | Severe-to-extreme disability |
The six domain subscales also surface their own scores in the live-scoring
pill — useful when the profile across domains matters (cognition-heavy vs.
mobility-heavy disability reads very differently for treatment planning).
The WHO publishes an IRT-based 0–100 complex-scoring algorithm that's
more psychometrically rigorous than the simple sum. Rivet uses the simple
sum, which is the dominant in-session method and is acceptable for
clinical monitoring. For research or formal disability-determination
contexts, consult the WHO 2010 manual scoring sheet for the complex
algorithm.
## WHODAS-12 vs the symptom measures
Every other screen here asks about symptoms. The WHODAS-12 asks about
function — whether the client can concentrate, get around, look after
themselves, get along with people, do their work and take part in their
community — and it does that without reference to any diagnosis.
That makes it the measure to reach for when the question is what the
condition is *costing*, rather than how severe it is. Two clients with the
same [PHQ-9](/clinical-templates/screening/phq-9) can be functioning very
differently, and a symptom score alone will not show that.
It is also the instrument most likely to be recognised outside your
office. Because it is a WHO instrument tied to the international
functioning classification, it tends to be accepted in
disability-documentation contexts where a symptom score alone carries less
weight.
One caveat if the score is going somewhere formal: the WHO publishes a
more rigorous scoring method than the simple sum used here, and that one
is the choice for disability determination or research. The simple sum is
the standard for clinical monitoring.
## Is it free to use?
**Yes.** Free clinical use, per the WHO.
## Citation
Üstün, T. B., Kostanjsek, N., Chatterji, S., & Rehm, J. (Eds.) (2010).
*Measuring Health and Disability: Manual for WHO Disability Assessment
Schedule WHODAS 2.0.* World Health Organization, Geneva.
Free clinical use per WHO; the verbatim canonical wording is preserved.
## When not to use it
The WHODAS measures disability, not symptomatology. For symptom-specific
severity, use the disorder-specific instrument (PHQ-9 for depression,
GAD-7 for anxiety, PCL-5 for PTSD). Pair the WHODAS with the
symptom-specific measure when you want to track whether symptom change is
also producing functional change — they don't always move together.
## Related articles
The WHO's 5-item well-being measure.
Kessler's 10-item psychological distress screen.