This study evaluates the impact of a community stroke awareness campaign on primary stroke survivors’ knowledge about stroke, their lifestyle profiles, and their quality of life.
A longitudinal descriptive study was employed, involving 243 primary stroke survivors from 3 centres. Stroke awareness campaign was conducted at centre where participants were recruited for this study. Participants from two centres Participants were assessed using validated questionnaires that measures quality of life (EQ-5D-3L), Lifestyle profile II and a developed questionnaire that assessed stroke survivor’s knowledge about stroke. A pre-post assessment was conducted at baseline, the months, six months, and 12 months.
The mean age of participants was 53 (13.7) years. Half of the participants were male (51%) and achieved education up to grade 7 (37.4%). Most of the participants reported left sided weakness (52.3%) post stroke and the majority (76.1%) had no speech impediment following the stroke. Post-intervention assessment showed overall higher mean scores for four domains of the lifestyle profile - health promoting lifestyle (p0.05), health responsibility (0.05), spiritual growth (0.01) and stress management (0.05). There was no significant change in the quality of life at baseline and at final follow-up. There was no evidence of statistically significant effect of the awareness campaign on the knowledge scores at follow up visits compared to baseline. However, stroke survivors had a good knowledge (score> 50%) of stroke.
These findings underscore the importance of community-based educational interventions in stroke management and rehabilitation.
Targeted Education:
Despite the overall good knowledge of stroke among participants, the lack of significant improvement in knowledge scores suggests that educational content may need to be more tailored and reinforced over time. Practitioners should focus on continuous education and personalized approaches to address specific knowledge gaps and ensure long-term retention of information.
Holistic Rehabilitation:
The positive changes in lifestyle profiles, particularly in areas like spiritual growth and stress management, underscore the need for a holistic approach to stroke rehabilitation. Incorporating elements that address mental and emotional well-being, alongside physical health, can lead to more comprehensive care and better outcomes for stroke survivors.
Community Engagement:
The success of the community stroke awareness campaign in improving lifestyle profiles suggests that community engagement is a valuable strategy in stroke management. Healthcare systems should leverage community resources and partnerships to extend the reach and impact of educational interventions.
Quality of life
Knowledge
