@article{PadbergKnispelZoellneretal.2016, author = {Padberg, Inken and Knispel, Petra and Z{\"o}llner, Susanne and Sieveking, Meike and Schneider, Alice and Steinbrink, Jens and Heuschmann, Peter U. and Wellwood, Ian and Meisel, Andreas}, title = {Social work after stroke: identifying demand for support by recording stroke patients' and carers' needs in different phases after stroke}, series = {BMC Neurology}, volume = {16}, journal = {BMC Neurology}, number = {111}, doi = {10.1186/s12883-016-0626-z}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-164691}, year = {2016}, abstract = {Background Previous studies examining social work interventions in stroke often lack information on content, methods and timing over different phases of care including acute hospital, rehabilitation and out-patient care. This limits our ability to evaluate the impact of social work in multidisciplinary stroke care. We aimed to quantify social-work-related support in stroke patients and their carers in terms of timing and content, depending on the different phases of stroke care. Methods We prospectively collected and evaluated data derived from a specialized "Stroke-Service-Point" (SSP); a "drop in" center and non-medical stroke assistance service, staffed by social workers and available to all stroke patients, their carers and members of the public in the metropolitan region of Berlin, Germany. Results Enquiries from 257 consenting participants consulting the SSP between March 2010 and April 2012 related to out-patient and in-patient services, therapeutic services, medical questions, medical rehabilitation, self-help groups and questions around obtaining benefits. Frequency of enquiries for different topics depended on whether patients were located in an in-patient or out-patient setting. The majority of contacts involved information provision. While the proportion of male and female patients with stroke was similar, about two thirds of the carers contacting the SSP were female. Conclusion The social-work-related services provided by a specialized center in a German metropolitan area were diverse in terms of topic and timing depending on the phase of stroke care. Targeting the timing of interventions might be important to increase the impact of social work on patient's outcome.}, language = {en} } @article{GrubeKoenneckeWalteretal.2013, author = {Grube, Maike Miriam and Koennecke, Hans-Christian and Walter, Georg and Meisel, Andreas and Sobesky, Jan and Nolte, Christian Hans and Wellwood, Ian and Heuschmann, Peter Ulrich}, title = {Influence of Acute Complications on Outcome 3 Months after Ischemic Stroke}, series = {PLOS ONE}, volume = {8}, journal = {PLOS ONE}, number = {9}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0075719}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-128362}, pages = {e75719}, year = {2013}, abstract = {Background: Early medical complications are potentially modifiable factors influencing in-hospital outcome. We investigated the influence of acute complications on mortality and poor outcome 3 months after ischemic stroke. Methods: Data were obtained from patients admitted to one of 13 stroke units of the Berlin Stroke Registry (BSR) who participated in a 3-months-follow up between June 2010 and September 2012. We examined the influence of the cumulative number of early in-hospital complications on mortality and poor outcome (death, disability or institutionalization) 3 months after stroke using multivariable logistic regression analyses and calculated attributable fractions to determine the impact of early complications on mortality and poor outcome. Results: A total of 2349 ischemic stroke patients alive at discharge from acute care were included in the analysis. Older age, stroke severity, pre-stroke dependency and early complications were independent predictors of mortality 3 months after stroke. Poor outcome was independently associated with older age, stroke severity, pre-stroke dependency, previous stroke and early complications. More than 60\% of deaths and poor outcomes were attributed to age, pre-stroke dependency and stroke severity and in-hospital complications contributed to 12.3\% of deaths and 9.1\% of poor outcomes 3 months after stroke. Conclusion: The majority of deaths and poor outcomes after stroke were attributed to non-modifiable factors. However, early in-hospital complications significantly affect outcome in patients who survived the acute phase after stroke, underlining the need to improve prevention and treatment of complications in hospital.}, language = {en} }