A Community-Engaged Assessment of Barriers and Facilitators to Rapid Stroke Treatment.
Lynne S Nemeth, Carolyn Jenkins, Edward C Jauch and 7 others
PMID 27545591WHAT IT FOUND
Stroke patients, families, EMS and providers in one rural county described mistrust, poor communication, low stroke knowledge and cost as barriers to rapid treatment.
They saw churches, workplaces and community education as routes to reach people.
Key findings
01Focus group participants named four barriers to rapid stroke treatment: mistrust, weak communication, low health literacy and financial limits.
02They also named two community potentials to build on: community-based education and faith as a message of hope.
03Some participants doubted EMS reliability and waited for ambulance or ED care, while others avoided or delayed care because of cost or insurance.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Findings come from one small rural county with a single hospital system, so they may not apply elsewhere. Participants were recruited by purposive and convenience sampling, and 10 recruited people did not take part, so the sample may not represent all stroke patients, families, or providers. The study reported perceptions and themes, not measured stroke treatment times or patient outcomes. Some investigators had a long-standing relationship with the community, which may have shaped recruitment and responses. Financial and medication concerns were self-reported and not checked against records.
Declared interests
No funding source or conflict-of-interest declaration is given in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these themes as evidence that a stroke education programme improves treatment times. The study described perceptions in one rural county and did not measure any clinical outcome.