Effects of Discharge Preparedness Program among Primary Caregivers of Patients with Ischemic Stroke in Nong Bua Lamphu Hospital

Abstract

Patients with ischemic stroke have a high rate of restriction in activities of daily living. Primary caregivers, therefore, play a prominent role for caregiving.  The aim of this study was to examine the effect of discharge preparedness program developed for primary caregivers of patients with ischemic stroke. The Interrupted Time Series Quasi-Experimental Design was conducted between December 2019 and February 2020. Purposive sampling was used with 108 primary caregivers in the Stroke Unit in Nong Bua Lamphu Hospital. The sample was divided into 2 groups including 54 participants in control group and 54 participants in experimental group. The control group received the current hospital standardized preparedness and the control group received the developed discharge preparedness program. Caregivers of the two groups were evaluated and compared the preparedness before discharge as well as the hospital readmission rates. The data of the control and experimental groups were compared and analyzed by using the Multivariable Risk Difference Regression.

            The findings revealed that the characteristics of the two groups were slightly different. Then, the imbalanced characteristics between these two groups were adjusted. The preparedness of the experimental group was higher than those in control group respectively (p<0.001) but the hospital preparedness scores were no significant difference between two groups (p=0.810). This study suggests that the discharge preparedness program should be promoted for the primary caregivers to enhance the level of confidence in their ability of caring for the stroke patients, resulting a reduction of serious complications and hospital readmission.