Effect of a Caregiver's Education Program on Stroke Rehabilitation

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate effects of caregiver's education program on their satisfaction, as well as patient functional recovery, performed in addition to daily conventional rehabilitation treatment. METHODS: Three hundred eleven subjects diagnosed with first-onset stroke and transferred to the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation of Inha University Hospital were surveyed. In 2015, caregivers attended an education program for acute and subacute stroke patients. Patients who received an additional rehabilitation therapy were assigned to the experimental group (n=81), whereas the control group (n=100) consisted of transfer cases in 2014 with only conventional treatment. The experimental group was classified by severity using the Korean version of the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (K-NIHSS), which was administered to all 181 subjects, in addition to, the Korean version of the Mini Mental Status Examination (K-MMSE), a Modified Barthel Index (K-MBI), and the Berg Balance Scale (K-BBS). Caregiver satisfaction and burden before and after education programs were assessed using the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM), as well as family burden and caregiver burnout scales. RESULTS: No significant intergroup difference was observed between initial K-NIHSS, K-MMSE, K-BBS, K-MBI scores, and times from admission to transfer. Those with moderate or severe strokes under the experimental condition showed a more significant improvement than the control group as determined by the K-NIHSS and K-BBS, as well as tendential K-MMSE and K-MBI score increases. Satisfaction was significantly greater for family members and formal caregivers of patients with strokes of moderate severity in the experimental group. CONCLUSION: The caregiver's education program for stroke subjects had a positive outcome on patients' functional improvement and caregiver satisfaction. The authors believe that the additional rehabilitation therapy with the education program aids patients to achieve functional improvements for an optimal return to social life.