Abstract:

The provision of occupational therapy for stroke patients by the social services was examined in 327 patients who had been discharged from hospital. Two-thirds (64%) of the patients were referred to the social service occupational therapist (SSOT). The occupational therapist visited a median of seven days from referral, treated the patient twice and then closed the case. The SSOT provided a range of equipment and adaptations to encourage independence in the community. Half of the patients visited received a bath-board and a quarter received an extra stair-rail to assist with mobility. Patients who had been referred to the SSOT and who also received therapy from an experimental domiciliary rehabilitation team received significantly more grab handles than those who were referred to the SSOT and also treated by the hospital-based rehabilitation teams. The SSOT provided a limited service to the group of stroke patients studied, mainly delivering equipment. The equipment was relatively cheap and may have been more appropriately administered by the hospital-based occupational therapist before the patient was discharged.