Exploring the Unmet Needs of Young Adults with Stroke in Australia: Can Technology Help Meet Their Needs? A Qualitative Study

Dinah Amoah (), Sarah Prior, Carey Mather, Matthew Schmidt and Marie-Louise Bird
Additional contact information
Dinah Amoah: School of Health Sciences, University of Tasmania, Launceston, TAS 7250, Australia
Sarah Prior: Tasmanian School of Medicine, University of Tasmania, Burnie, TAS 7320, Australia
Carey Mather: Australian Institute of Health Service Management, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS 7001, Australia
Matthew Schmidt: School of Health Sciences, University of Tasmania, Launceston, TAS 7250, Australia
Marie-Louise Bird: School of Health Sciences, University of Tasmania, Launceston, TAS 7250, Australia

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 15, 1-18

Abstract: The post-stroke needs of young adults with stroke are not being met, as most resources are tailored to older people with stroke. This includes technology-based applications, which are being used more frequently in stroke rehabilitation. There is limited data on technology usage to support the unique needs of young adults with stroke in Australia. This study aimed to explore the unmet needs of young adults aged 18–30 years with stroke and ascertain how technology can help meet those needs to improve quality of life and participation. Sixteen in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with young adults with stroke ( n = 10), healthcare professionals ( n = 3) and caregivers of young adults with stroke ( n = 3). The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed inductively. Five themes were generated: ‘Support for recovery’, ‘Availability of specific resources’, ‘Continuity of care’, ‘Adjustment’ and ‘Knowledge’. This study revealed the unique needs of young adults under 30 years with stroke who requested more targeted post-stroke support, age-specific resources and improved awareness on young stroke, with technology playing a pivotal role in all these interventions. We suggest co-designing technology-based solutions with young people after stroke to maximize their effectiveness in improving quality of life and participation in this unique cohort.

Keywords: post-stroke support; digital rehabilitation; young stroke; age specific resources; phenomenology; quality of life; Australia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/15/6450/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/15/6450/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:15:p:6450-:d:1203361

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().