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Updated: Mar 6, 2026
Gathering Self-Initiated Rat Behavioral Data to Characterize Post-Stroke Deficits
Published on: March 15, 2024
Exploring stroke survivors' and physiotherapists' views of self-management after stroke: a qualitative study in the
Euan Sadler1,2, Charles D A Wolfe2,3,4, Fiona Jones5
1Health Service and Population Research Department, King's Improvement Science, Centre for Implementation Science, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Objectives:
Stroke is a sudden-onset condition with long-term consequences. Self-management could help address long-term consequences of stroke. Stroke survivors' and health professionals' views of self-management may vary, limiting the successful introduction of self-management strategies. This paper explores stroke survivors' and physiotherapists' views of self-management, focusing on what self-management means, and factors perceived to enable and hinder self-management after stroke, to draw out implications for policy, practice and future research.
Design:
Qualitative study using semistructured interviews and a thematic analysis approach.
Setting:
Stroke unit and community stroke-rehabilitation services in London, UK.
Participants:
13 stroke survivors (8 men and 5 women; aged 53-89 years) admitted to a London stroke unit. 13 physiotherapists: 8 working in an inpatient stroke unit and 5 in community rehabilitation.
Results:
Key differences were evident in how self-management was understood between these groups. Stroke survivors were unfamiliar with the term self-management, but most could provide their own definition and relate to the term, and understood it as care of the self: 'doing things for yourself' and 'looking after yourself'. They did not recognise self-management as part of their care, but valued therapists as encouraging experts in supporting their recovery after stroke. Physiotherapists commonly understood self-management as a process in which stroke survivors were expected to take an active role in their rehabilitation and manage their recovery and health, with different understandings of self-management among physiotherapists shaped by the context in which they worked. They reported that individual, social and organisational factors enable and hinder self-management after stroke, with individual and organisational barriers particularly evident in the early stages.
Conclusions:
If self-management support approaches are to be used, further work is required to explore the language and strategies used by professionals to support self-management, and the barriers to supporting self-management at different time points after stroke.
