Community-Based Stroke Information for Clients with Stroke and Their Carers: Is There Congruency Between Actual and Recommended Practice?

Abstract

Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability in the Western world, 1-3 with up to two thirds of stroke survivors living with some level of disability. 1,4 The provision of information is recognised as a key feature of poststroke management for clients with stroke, their carers, and their families, [5][6][7] and it can improve client and carer knowledge, reduce client depression, and increase some aspects of client satisfaction. 8 However, details of postdischarge information provision for community-dwelling stroke clients and their carers have received little attention in the literature. This article begins with a discussion of the recommendations from the literature regarding the content, format, delivery style, and timing components of information provision about stroke. Where stroke-specific recommendations do not exist in the literature, general health education recommendations are provided. A study that explored the way in which services provide information to community-based clients with stroke and/or their carers is then described and the literature recommendations are subsequently compared to the results of the study.Purpose: Information provision is an integral part of poststroke care, and there is a need to identify how to provide it most effectively. Intervention details, such as content, delivery style, format, and timing, are infrequently reported in the literature. This project describes in detail the provision of information to clients with stroke and their carers by community services in Brisbane, Australia, and compares these to current recommendations in the literature. Method: Fifty-seven metropolitan-based community services were surveyed regarding the content, delivery style, format, and timing of information available to clients with stroke and their carers, using a telephone-administered questionnaire designed for this study. Results: Services provided information using a range of formats and delivery styles. The most frequently provided topics were information on services and benefits available and practical management strategies. Less than 75% of services provided written information to most of their clients and/or carers. Less than 40% of services considered client and carer input when designing written information materials. Conclusion: Community services surveyed in this study demonstrated congruency with some, but not all, of the current content, format, and delivery style recommendations in the literature. Areas for improvement are discussed. Key words: cerebrovascular accident, consumer health information, health education, patient education, stroke, teaching Content of Information ProvisionAs clients with stroke transition from inpatient care to the early post hospital-discharge phase, their need, and that of their carers, for clinical 15-18 A fear of recurrence of stroke and the subsequent need for information regarding secondary prevention is particularly strong for community-based clients with stroke and their carers. 10,11,14,15,17,18 Therefore, information about a wide r...

Delivery styles and formats for different stroke information topics: Patient and carer preferences

“…Because stroke information needs continue to change over time [4,5,7,8], it is possible that as patients and carers become disconnected from the hospital service, that their preferences for receiving this information also change. Our recent study found that community-based services most frequently reported using an interactive delivery style and talking through written information in providing stroke information to patients and their carers [37], but whether this is suitable to stroke patients and their carers in the community is yet to be determined.…”

Randomised controlled trial of an education and support package for stroke patients and their carers

“…The design of the education and support package was informed by recommendations from the literature, 25 and previous research by the author team which explored current practice gaps, 25 patient and carer preferences for receiving information 19 and potential barriers to information provision. 26 The health professional providing the package was the lead author, who is an occupational therapist with clinical experience in stroke rehabilitation; however, the intervention was designed so that it could be provided by any health professional who has knowledge and experience in stroke management.…”

Do People With Aphasia Want Written Stroke and Aphasia Information? A Verbal Survey Exploring Preferences for When and How to Provide Stroke and Aphasia Information

“…37 Stroke patients, for example, have previously identified that it would be helpful to receive follow-up visits or follow-up telephone calls from health professionals. 19 People with aphasia have also reported receiving relevant, useful, and easy-to-understand information by attending education programs run by multidisciplinary health care staff.…”