Stroke
Almost 300 recommendation updates made to the National Clinical Guideline for Stroke in the UK in 2023
The National Clinical Guideline for Stroke is an organisation that provides authoritative, evidence based practice guidance that improves the quality of care for every adult who has had a stroke in the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland regardless of age, gender, type of stroke, location, or any other feature.
This year alone, there were almost three-hundred recommendation updates made to the guideline.
What’s New in the 2023 Edition?
Out of 538 recommendations in The National Clinical Guideline for Stroke, almost 300 have been updated, added, or endorsed since the previous 2016 edition.
These revisions range across different categories including the Organisation of Stroke Services, Acute Care, Rehabilitation and Recovery, and Long-term Management and Secondary Prevention.
Following a stroke many individuals experience motor skill challenges and set motor recovery goals while in rehabilitation.
The National Clinical Guideline for Stroke now states that these individuals should receive a minimum of 3 hours of multidisciplinary therapy a day. These efforts must be delivered or supervised by a therapist or rehabilitation assistant focused on exercise, motor retraining and/ or functional practice within 5 out of 7 days.
(4.2A) GripAble is a mobile rehab platform for individuals with impaired hand, wrist or arm movement. It delivers gamified therapy activities, digital assessment, and data-driven insights into a patient’s function.
In a number of ways, GripAble is a valuable solution for therapists striving to deliver care in alignment with the guidelines.
Why Consistent, Repetitive Movements are Essential for Stroke Patients
High repetition movements that are personalised to the individual's training needs, supports a rehabilitation regime that can prepare someone for full function tasks.
High dose, intensive rehabilitation yields faster and greater recovery in stroke patients.
A recent study carried out by researchers at Imperial College indicates that the GripAble device can significantly increase the amount of upper limb training exercises stroke survivors are able to complete.
In a clinical trial of 30 patients, researchers found that the device enabled on average 104 upper limb repetitions per day, whereas conventional therapy achieved 15 repetitions per day.
Co-author of the study, Dr. Paul Bentley states “The findings from this clinical trial provide evidence that GripAble can be adopted to help further support stroke patients with severe arm weakness with their rehabilitation unsupervised.”
The GripAble device is highly sensitive to just 100 grams of pressure and can be used by most patients, even those with limited grip or movement. The device is calibrated and personalised to each user’s ability with real time feedback to help build motivation and engagement.
Therapists may issue a GripAble device to be used in a clinical or home environment and once the device is calibrated to the individual's ability, the GripAble games offer a natural progression as the patient works through the levels, meaning they can continue to work towards their goals with ‘light touch’ input, which is perfect for motivated patients.
How GripAble Can Help Therapists Utilise Their Time Effectively
Once a therapist has set the device parameters, therapeutic goals, and achievements specific to the individual, patients are able to continue their rehabilitation practice outside of therapy sessions at a time and place convenient to them.
Depending on availability and the size of a clinic, time is known to be one of the therapist's biggest hurdles. For therapists, the GripAble platform can assist in time management by reducing administrative tasks through its real time reporting capabilities.
Since the device tracks goals and measurements accurately, therapists can view the natural progression to then relay to the patients how much they need to practice outside of therapy time.
In addition, GripAble supports independent part practice between therapy sessions. This frees up the therapist to focus clinical time on more meaningful tasks, discharge planning and more.
How Telehealth Equipment Can Benefit Stroke Patients During Rehabilitation
According to revision 6.4D, stroke rehabilitation service providers should ensure that they have adequate equipment which includes the technology requirements that provide telerehabilitation to enable provision of the treatments recommended within this guideline.
Due to GripAble’s mobile compatibility, the device provides stroke patients with streamlined upper limb training opportunities and provides therapists the ability to better remotely track progress outside of therapy time. This gives therapists the tools to support even the most remote of patients through telerehabilitation.
GripAble Promotes Long Term Self-Management
Partial supervision is a bridge to self-management. This gives the patient an aspect of control during a therapy intervention, which can increase motor learning.
GripAble does this through arm’s length supervision, choice of game, choice of movement, and more. This control allows them to take charge of their own learning process, often resulting in more active involvement and increased effort invested in practice.
GripAble Is Highly Accessible
GripAble is highly accessible to most patients at all times. Even an immobile patient can work on upper limb rehabilitation goals whilst in bed.
GripAble is a ‘serious game’ which combines entertainment, attentional engagement, and problem-solving to challenge function and performance — built with cognition in mind.
Extremely sensitive calibration means even severely physically affected patients can access it.
The GripAble platform provides objective and validated assessments, outcome measures, and a chart of progress to support clinical decision making.
GripAble is available for direct purchase in the United Kingdom, and is distributed by Medline in the United States. For more information on how GripAble can be used in your therapy practice please contact hello@gripable.co
Social Return’s Re-drawing Identity conference:
Thoughts from The Compere
A little water and some reflection has flowed under the bridge since our ‘conference with a difference’ couple of months ago and we continue to receive fantastic feedback from attendees and from those who have heard about the day.
We are delighted by the impact it has had!
We wanted to create ‘a conference with a difference’ by shaking up the usual conference format with the aim of creating something deep, meaningful and immersive.
At the heart of this difference was the collaboration between our amazing presenters who gave generously of their time to meet with each other ensuring that topics and content was integrated and there was a flow to the day.
I know from presenter feedback that this was a very enjoyable process, from which we learned from each other along the way.
The selection of a theatre space as our venue and a meeting of minds about adding artistic content in terms of the drawings, by Graham Ogilvie, Grace, Currie’s, painting and original music content by Evernova (as well as the guest appearance of a glitterball!) served to strengthen and underpin the messages and learning around
the topic of the day.
But beyond all of those aspects, the contributions - directly and indirectly - from people whose life changing injury profoundly impacted their identity, was the aspect that fundamentally impacted all of us across the day.
It was humbling and powerful to hear their stories and to view therapeutic inputs through the lens of authentic lived experience.
I am delighted that we were able to create and share something about such a central aspect for survivors of life changing injury and that the content resonated so meaningfully with those who are tasked with supporting recovery, rehabilitation
and re-drawing identity.
97 attendees voted for Social Return to run another conference, so watch this space for information on the next one!
Incredible conference hosted by Social Return Case Management
yesterday. My brain was buzzing with ideas! Becky Coupland
A wonderful day at Social Return Case Management 's re- drawing identity conference with some team members. It was wonderful to present alongside such inspiring and interesting speakers and the day had a wonderful atmosphere.
The structure was very creative with Evernova playing beautiful music, Graham Ogilvie drawing as we spoke and painting by Grace Currie.
Well done Vicki Gilman and team for a unique event born of creativity, quirkiness and a good chunk of enthusiastic hardwork! Lucy Fallon
Great day in Leeds at #redrawingidentity. Fabulous speakers, inspirational client stories and left the venue feeling motivated and energised. I love thinking outside
the box Good day at the office. Emma Fitzsimmons
What type of conference has this kind of line up And a real life artist, musicians and SWEETIE BAGS?! A Social Return conference that’s what. And it was 10/10. Thank you @ VickiGilman and @SocialReturnCM as a Case Manager, what you did for us
all today meant a lot. Caroline Phelps
Possibly the best conference we have ever attended. Creative, thoughtful, Educational. Human. Inspiring. Well done @SocialReturnCM team.
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