Understanding Long-Term Unmet Needs in Australian Survivors of Stroke

Abstract

The extent to which long-term needs were met was influenced by a variety of factors, particularly age, disability levels, and residential location. Changes need to be made to the way and extent to which survivors are supported following stroke.

Is health-related quality of life between 90 and 180 days following stroke associated with long-term unmet needs?

“…Data from survivors of stroke who were registered in the Australian Stroke Clinical Registry (AuSCR) database and completed the Australian Stroke Survivor and Carer Needs Survey (Needs Survey) were included [2]. The AuSCR is a collaborative national registry designed to monitor, promote and improve the quality of acute stroke care (www.…”

“…Many survivors of stroke (over 80 %) have reported having unmet needs at 12 or more months following stroke [2,3]. In these studies, a need was defined as ''something or help from someone that would help the survivor to overcome some of the effects of their stroke and resulting difficulties'' [2,3].…”

“…Many survivors of stroke (over 80 %) have reported having unmet needs at 12 or more months following stroke [2,3]. In these studies, a need was defined as ''something or help from someone that would help the survivor to overcome some of the effects of their stroke and resulting difficulties'' [2,3]. Levels of unmet needs have also been shown to vary depending on the age, functional disability and geographic location of the survivor [2] and to impact negatively on caregivers [4].…”

“…In these studies, a need was defined as ''something or help from someone that would help the survivor to overcome some of the effects of their stroke and resulting difficulties'' [2,3]. Levels of unmet needs have also been shown to vary depending on the age, functional disability and geographic location of the survivor [2] and to impact negatively on caregivers [4]. Despite this, there is limited understanding of how health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in the early period following stroke influences unmet needs of survivors of stroke longer term.…”

“…However, information regarding long-term unmet needs in survivors of stroke and other clinical groups is not routinely collected at a population level and is currently limited to cross-sectional surveys [2,3]. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL), on the other hand, is often routinely collected in stroke as part of data collection systems such as clinical registries [5,6] and epidemiological studies [7].…”