The efficacy of self-care education on rehabilitation of stroke patients.

OBJECTIVE To determine the efficacy of self-care education on rehabilitation of hemiplegic stroke patients discharged from hospital. METHODS For this experimental study, 80 patients were randomly assigned to 2 groups at Urmia University of Medical Sciences Hospitals, Iran, in 2008. First, we recorded the demographic data, and ability performance of both groups, then self-care education was given for the experiment group. Finally, both groups were retested 45 days following the last self-care education section of the experiment group. RESULTS The results of the study showed a significant difference between the mean acquired distinctions in different performance fields before and after education for the study group (p=0.0001). In addition, the findings showed a significant difference between the 2 groups post-test (p=0.0001). We statistically concluded by independent t test that the level of performance in the experimental group was higher than the controls (t=19.83; p=0.0001). CONCLUSION Self-care education of stroke survivors can improve patient's performance, and change them from a dependent to an independent person.