Self-Management Programs and Service Transition for Stroke Survivors

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Self-Management Programs and Service Transition for Stroke Survivors: The patients perspective

  • IRAS ID

    135439

  • Contact name

    N Ward

  • Contact email

    n.ward@ucl.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    UCLH

  • Research summary

    The Problem: The number of stroke patients in the UK is rising. As a result, there will be an increasing demand for stroke rehabilitation and support services. This fuels two emerging problems: Firstly, service demand is expected to outweigh provision. Secondly, the stroke care pathway stops at community level, leaving patients with ‘unmet needs’, and feeling ‘abandoned’.

    A solution: Self-management (SM) could potentially eradicate the above problems as providing patients with a SM program (SMP) would give patients the skills to support themselves and has the potential to increase self-efficacy, which in turn may reduce feelings of abandonment that individuals experience after discharge. Although we know self-management can be successfully taught to stroke survivors on a one-to-one basis with many benefits, there is no work looking at SM and the impact it could have on improving transition through services. Furthermore, there is little, if any, literature detailing patient views on delivery mechanisms for SMPs.
    Aims: 1.To investigate patient experience of service transition through the stroke pathway and discharge from each service. 2. To investigate patient views on how effective SMPs would be in both smoothing the transition through the stroke pathway and reducing feelings of abandonment and ill preparation when rehabilitation ceases.
    Research Questions: 1. How do patients experience service transition when no SMP is in place? 2. How do patients think this could be improved? 3. What do patients think of SMPs as a concept? 4. Do patients feel that SMPs would improve the transition between services?
    Plan of Research: Using the Sobell Stroke Database 10 patients will be recruited. A qualitative approach will be used, incorporating a semi-structured interview which is expected to last no longer than one hour. Interviews will analysed using the grounded theory method.

  • REC name

    London - Queen Square Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    13/LO/1412

  • Date of REC Opinion

    14 Nov 2013

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion