Supportive Care Needs of Ischemic Stroke Survivors at Various Rehabilitation Stages: A Qualitative Longitudinal Study

Research has shown that providing high-quality supportive care to ischemic stroke survivors can promote their physical rehabilitation. Therefore, understanding the supportive care needs of this patient group is essential.

To investigate ischemic stroke survivors' supportive care needs at various rehabilitation stages.

This phenomenological study used purposive sampling to recruit ischemic stroke patients from a tertiary hospital in Xuzhou, China, between April 2023 and October 2023. Data were collected at four rehabilitation stages through in-depth interviews and observations of ischemic stroke survivors. Forty-eight semi-structured interviews were conducted, and data were analysed using Colaizzi's phenomenological method to identify study themes.

The themes of ischemic stroke survivors' supportive care needs at various rehabilitation stages were as follows: (1) comprehensive stroke knowledge (acute hospitalisation stage), (2) comprehensive rehabilitation support (1 month after stroke onset), (3) continuity of care services (3 months after stroke onset) and (4) systemic social support (6 months after stroke onset).

Ischemic stroke patients' supportive care needs vary according to the stages of the disease. Healthcare providers and caregivers should deliver stage-specific holistic care to help enhance these patients' rehabilitation.