The role of accommodations in poststroke disability management

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Stroke is a leading cause of disability in older adults, impacting self-care and mobility.
• Assistive devices and personal assistance are crucial for maintaining independence post-stroke.
• Understanding unmet needs is vital for effective post-stroke care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the use of assistive devices and personal assistance among older stroke survivors.
• To identify the unmet need for assistance in daily activities for this population.
• To determine factors influencing the use of accommodations and unmet needs.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of the 2011 National Health and Aging Trends Study data.
• Comparison of stroke survivors (N=892) with stroke-free controls (N=6,709).
• Examination of accommodation types and unmet needs for self-care and mobility activities, with regression modeling.

Main Results:

• Stroke survivors utilized more assistive devices and personal assistance compared to controls.
• A significant unmet need for assistance was observed in stroke survivors.
• Physical and cognitive capacities were key predictors of accommodation use, which in turn predicted unmet need.

Conclusions:

• Older stroke survivors commonly use accommodations, yet substantial unmet needs persist.
• Enhancing post-stroke functional and cognitive capacity is essential.
• Improving assistive device adoption can help mitigate unmet needs in stroke survivors.