Life after stroke from Survivors perspective: A descriptive cross-sectional study

<h2>Abstract</h2><h3>Introduction</h3> Stroke contributes to the global disability and greatly affects the physical, cognitive and emotional wellbeing of an individual. Understanding the factors that influence recovery is crucial for developing interventions that promote independence and autonomy among stroke survivors. The present study examines the relationship between self-efficacy, functional ability, quality of life and perceived dependence on caregiver among stroke survivors. <h3>Materials and methods</h3> A Quantitative approach with descriptive-cross sectional design was adopted in the study. By using convenient sampling technique, a total of 148 stroke survivors within the age group of 35–65 years were recruited from the neuro inpatient department of a selected tertiary care hospital of Ernakulam district, Kerala. The tools used to collect the data were, The socio demographic proforma, Clinical proforma, The Stroke Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, The Barthel Index, The Stroke Specific Quality of Life Scale, and Likert scale on Perceived dependence on caregiver. Spearman's correlation and Mann-Whitney/Kruskal-Wallis test or ANOVA (p < 0.05) was used for data analysis. <h3>Results</h3> The study revealed low median scores for self-efficacy 2(0,6), functional ability 35(20,40), Quality of life 58(49,67) and perceived dependence 56(55,58) among stroke survivors. Quality of life was significantly related to self-efficacy (r_s = 0.526, p < 0.001) and functional ability (r_s = 0.523, p < 0.001) whereas a negative correlation was observed with perceived caregiver dependence (r_s = -0.249, p < 0.001). <h3>Conclusion</h3> Quality of life of stroke survivors was significantly related with Self-efficacy, Functional ability and Perceived dependence on caregiver. Health care professionals can improve stroke outcomes by optimizing the care requisites and by initiating Nurse-Led Rehabilitation empowerment programs.