Publications by authors named "Deborah Willems"
Article Synopsis
- Stroke units in Ontario provide best practice care by ensuring patients receive timely rehabilitation, with recommendations for transfer to inpatient care by day 5 for ischemic strokes and day 7 for hemorrhagic strokes.
- Focus group discussions revealed perceived barriers to these recommendations, categorized into patient-centered, clinician-focused, and resource/system-based challenges, such as patient readiness, medical testing delays, and transportation issues.
- Despite the obstacles presented by Ontario's health system, stakeholders believe that effective planning, better coordination, and targeted investment could improve timely rehabilitation transfers for stroke patients.
Background: The number of patients requiring in-patient rehabilitation services following acute stroke is unknown.
Methods: All consecutive patients admitted with a diagnosis of stroke to eight community hospitals in southwestern Ontario from May 2008 to December 2009 were screened for in-patient rehabilitation eligibility using the Stroke Rehabilitation Candidacy Screening Tool.
Results: Three hundred ninety-six patients were included, of which 147 (37.
Background: The superiority of dedicated stroke rehabilitation over generalized rehabilitation services has been suggested by the literature; however, these models of service delivery have not been evaluated in terms of their relative effectiveness in situ.
Aims: A comparison of the process indicators associated with these two models of service provision was undertaken within the Ontario healthcare system.
Methods: All adults admitted with a diagnosis of stroke for inpatient rehabilitation in Ontario, Canada during the years 2006-2008 were identified from the National Rehabilitation Reporting System database.
Recovery of standing balance and functional mobility after stroke.
Arch Phys Med Rehabil
December 2003
Objective: To examine the extent to which recovery of functional balance and mobility is accompanied by change in a few specific physiologic measures of postural control.
Design: Longitudinal prospective study.
Setting: Laboratory setting in Ontario.