Experiences of Dysphagia after Stroke: An Interview Study of Stroke Survivors and Their Informal Caregivers
1
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Speech and Language Therapy Department, SheffieldS10 2JF, UK
2
Faculty of Health and Wellbeing, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield S10 2BP, UK
3
School of Population Health and Environmental Sciences, King’s College London, London SE1 1UL, UK
4
Division of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester Centre for Clinical Neurosciences, Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Salford M6 8HD, UK
5
The Stroke Association, London EC1V 2PR, UK
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Geriatrics 2019, 4(4), 67; https://doi.org/10.3390/geriatrics4040067
Received: 6 November 2019 / Revised: 29 November 2019 / Accepted: 3 December 2019 / Published: 7 December 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stroke in the Elderly)
(1) Background: Swallowing difficulties (dysphagia) after stroke are not uncommon and is a consistent risk factor for stroke-associated pneumonia. This interview study explores the perspectives of stroke survivors, who had their swallowing assessed in the first few days of admission to hospital, and their informal caregivers. (2) Methods: A participatory approach was used involving people affected by stroke in the interpretation and analysis of the interview data. Data was thematically analysed and six themes were identified. (3) Results: These themes included how past-future experiences may influence a person’s emotional response to events; understanding what is happening and adjustment; the impact of dysphagia; attitudes to care; communication to patients and procedural issues. (4) Conclusion: The findings highlight the importance of effective public health messages to improve people’s responsiveness to the signs of stroke, standardisation of assessment and management procedures, effective communication to patients about the consequences of dysphagia, and the impact of dysphagia on the person who had the stroke and their informal caregiver.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Eltringham, S.A.; Pownall, S.; Bray, B.; Smith, C.J.; Piercy, L.; Sage, K. Experiences of Dysphagia after Stroke: An Interview Study of Stroke Survivors and Their Informal Caregivers. Geriatrics 2019, 4, 67.
AMA Style
Eltringham SA, Pownall S, Bray B, Smith CJ, Piercy L, Sage K. Experiences of Dysphagia after Stroke: An Interview Study of Stroke Survivors and Their Informal Caregivers. Geriatrics. 2019; 4(4):67.
Chicago/Turabian StyleEltringham, Sabrina A.; Pownall, Sue; Bray, Ben; Smith, Craig J.; Piercy, Laura; Sage, Karen. 2019. "Experiences of Dysphagia after Stroke: An Interview Study of Stroke Survivors and Their Informal Caregivers" Geriatrics 4, no. 4: 67.
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