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Evaluation of a nurse-led multidisciplinary neurological rehabilitation programme using the Nottingham Health Profile
J Sitzia1, V Haddrell, M Rice-Oxley
1Worthing Hospital NHS Trust, Sussex, UK.
Objective:
To ascertain whether or not an inpatient multidisciplinary treatment programme for patients with Parkinson's disease or multiple sclerosis resulted in a measurable change in patients' health-related quality of life (HRQL).
Design:
Assessments of HRQL were made one week before adm ssion and approximately one month post discharge.
Setting:
Six-bed Neurological Rehabilitation Unit at Worthing Hospital on the south coast of England.
Subjects:
Fifty-eight patients with Parkinson's disease and 33 patients with multiple sclerosis.
Interventions:
All patients received an individually adapted, multidisciplinary rehabilitation programme. The programmes lasted from 5 to 10 days.
Main Outcome Measures:
HRQL scores on the Nottingham Health Profile Part 1 (NHP-1).
Results:
Overall post-treatment NHP-1 scores were significantly better than overall pretreatment scores for both the Parkinson's group (z= 2.6, p <0.01) and the multiple sclerosis group (z = 2.1, p <0.05). Sixty-four per cent of patients perceived an overall improvement. The strongest improvement was in 'physical mobility' in the multiple sclerosis group (z = 3.0, p <0.01) and in 'emotional reactions' in the Parkinson's group (z = 2.9, p <0.01).
Conclusions:
These results suggest that the multidisciplinary inpatient approach in neurological rehabilitation has identifiable short-term benefits for the majority of patients. A randomized trial with longer follow-up is required to confirm this.