Abstract TP324: Novel Stroke Knowledge Quiz Demonstrates Stroke Survivors’ Understanding of and Capacity to Learn about Stroke Symptoms, Risk Factors, and Prevention

Introduction: Patient understanding of stroke symptoms, risk factors, and emergency response/prevention is essential for risk reduction and early treatment of recurrent strokes. 25% of US strokes are recurrent. We developed a 25-item quiz that identified knowledge category gains and the impact of question type with a goal of refining future quiz structure to guide quality improvement in our stroke education program. Methods: We conducted a prospective observational study in patients treated in our community-based outpatient stroke rehabilitation program from 2013-2024. Aphasic patients were excluded. Short and simple questions were developed using AHA’s Life’s Simple 7’s curriculum, a standardized, widely used educational tool. 9 True/False type questions assessed stroke/TIA category symptoms;11 open-ended questions addressed risk factor knowledge;5 fill in the blank questions assessed emergency response and prevention. We calculated percent correct for individual questions, question type, and category; with statistical significance of changes assessed with paired t-tests. Results: 243 consecutive patients took the quiz on admit and 143 on DC. Overall percent correct improved from 39.9% to 51.4%. Statistically significant improvements were seen among all three question types and subject categories. True/False type questions(symptoms) had the highest baseline scores(75.5%) with modest gains upon DC to 80.9%(+5.4%,P=0.006). Fill in the Blank type showed greater gains, increasing from 31.3% to 51.3%(+20.0%,P=0.037). Open-ended type(risk factor) were most difficult, but improved from 14.5% to 27.3%(+12.8%,P=0.018). Initially 45.3% of patients knew to call 911, improving to 81.8%; 35.8% knew AHA recommendation for blood pressure; improving to 76.2%. Only 28% could name at least one stroke risk factor on admit, increasing to 64.3%. Conclusion: This study shows stroke survivors can learn and retain information about stroke symptoms, risk factors, emergency response, and prevention strategies. Knowledge gains were observed across question types. True/False type on stroke symptoms showed higher baseline scores with the least improvement(5%). Open-ended questions requiring recall revealed greater baseline deficits and higher gains from education(20%&12.8%). These findings support efforts to refine methods to optimize assessment of survivors’ stroke knowledge, and direct future patient-centered education during recovery with a goal of decreasing recurrent strokes.