Perceived Quality of Care Transitions between Hospital and the Home in People with Stroke

To explore the perceived quality of care transitions from hospital to the home with referral to subsequent rehabilitation in the home, and factors associated with low perceived quality, in people with stroke.

Observational study.

Eligible were patients with a suspected acute stroke admitted to 1 of 4 inpatient hospital units in the Stockholm region and discharged home with referral to a neurorehabilitation team in primary care.

Data on perceived quality of care transition was collected with the Care Transition Measure (CTM-15) 1 week after discharge. Additional data were mainly retrieved from medical records. To analyze difference in mean total score of the CTM-15 between participants' characteristics, length of hospital stay, disease-related data, and functioning, the Mann-Whitney U test and independent sample t test were used for dichotomized variables and 1-way analysis of variance and the Tukey post hoc test for variables with more than 2 groups. To analyze differences between participants with low and high perceived quality per item, univariable regression analyses were performed. Thereafter, multivariable regression models were created to explore associations between low perceived quality and the independent variables.

Mean age of the 189 participants was 75 years and 91% had a mild or very mild stroke. The majority perceived most areas of the care transition to be of high quality. Nevertheless, several areas for improvement were identified. People with a more severe stroke perceived the quality of the care transition to be lower in comparison with those with a mild stroke. The association was weak between patient or clinical characteristics and the perceived quality.

Our findings suggest that preparation for discharge and information and support for self-management postdischarge should be enhanced in the referral-based care transition after stroke. Special attention should be given to people with severe stroke.