Volunteer Engagement in a Stroke Self-Management Program: Qualitative Analysis of a Hybrid Team of Healthcare Providers and Trained Volunteers

Stroke recovery is a complex, multidimensional and heterogeneous process. Volunteer engagement improves the delivery of interventions in stroke rehabilitation programs but is under-utilized due to poor role clarity and other program-related concerns. We evaluated healthcare providers’ and volunteers’ perceptions of volunteer engagement in an 8-week self-management program that provided self-management support for community-dwelling stroke survivors. Using a qualitative design, we conducted individual, semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of 5 trained healthcare providers and 18 volunteers. The participants shared their experiences of supporting survivors, perceptions of volunteer engagement, and areas of improvement to optimize volunteer support. Three main themes and six subthemes emerged: bilateral exchange between healthcare providers/volunteers and survivors; adoption of individualized approaches; and suggestions for optimizing volunteer contributions. Volunteer engagement can be optimized by developing well-designed programs with sufficient role clarity, strengthened collaborations with healthcare providers and adequate training. Our findings highlighted the contributions of trained volunteers in supporting stroke survivors’ self-management. Future research should evaluate the use of peer and healthcare professional volunteers in such programs and build community capacity to support stroke survivors’ recovery.