# Clinical scales - ordinal or coded text?

**URL:** https://discourse.openehr.org/t/clinical-scales-ordinal-or-coded-text/709
**Category:** Clinical
**Tags:** modelling-patterns
**Created:** [20 May 2020 14:53 UTC](https://discourse.openehr.org/t/clinical-scales-ordinal-or-coded-text/709 "2020-05-20T14:53:44Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Showing post:** 32

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### Author: ![siljelb](https://discourse.openehr.org/user_avatar/discourse.openehr.org/siljelb/32/12_2.png) [@siljelb](https://discourse.openehr.org/u/siljelb)
#### Post date: [27 May 2020 08:36 UTC](https://discourse.openehr.org/t/clinical-scales-ordinal-or-coded-text/709/32 "2020-05-27T08:36:48Z")

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> [@vanessap](#):
>
> From my perspective and usage from the both classes you mentioned I prefer to use the DV\_ORDINAL for scales instead of DV\_CODED\_TEXT/DV\_TEXT. The current tools I use allows to make immediate calculations of total scores if using ordinal for each element, plus the option the show or hide the ordinal number on the front end. Otherwise if using the coded\_text/text it takes an additional parsing and I don’t believe to be that user/developer friendly in the final. I also try to avoid as much to have the case you mention with “1:1. Very fit” from the ordinal+ (number)description, it’s redundant in my opinion. Maybe only ordinal+description “1: Very fit” would be enough.

Thanks Vanessa! Your recommendations seem to be the same as Bjørn’s. I think this strengthens this suggestion for modelling guideline:

> [@siljelb](#):
>
> “If a scale is displayed as a numbered list, use DV\_ORDINAL [to be changed to DV\_SCALE once this is available in major tools]. Do not replicate numbers in the description.”

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