Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 28, 2026
Driving Simulation in the Clinic: Testing Visual Exploratory Behavior in Daily Life Activities in Patients with Visual Field Defects
Published on: September 18, 2012
Access and participation in the community: a prospective qualitative study of driving post-stroke
Jennifer H White1, Belinda Miller, Parker Magin
1Hunter Stroke Service, Hunter New England Area Health Local Network, New South Wales, Australia. jennifer.white@hnehealth.nsw.gov.au
Purpose:
Loss of role as a driver significantly affects community participation; therefore, we aimed to explore the impact of driving issues post-stroke in community-dwelling stroke survivors.
Methods:
A longitudinal qualitative study of community-dwelling stroke survivors, using semi-structured interviews.
Results:
Twenty-two participants took part in 84 interviews over a 1-year period post-stroke. The majority of participants was independent and experienced few major depressive symptoms. ages ranged from 50 to 92 years. Emergent key themes included impact on quality of life, personal impacts, change to role performance and knowledge. Participants received inconsistent advice regarding return to driving. Confidence and availability determined public transport use.
Conclusions:
Driving advice should be standard practice prior to discharge. Allied health professionals can play an essential role in interventions addressing community participation, driver re-training and alternative transport use. Therapists have an important role in assisting stroke survivors to work through feelings of loss and in providing education concerning new skills to support this life transition.
