Consent
If you decide to volunteer for the HOME Rehab Trial and you meet the eligibility criteria for trial participants:
- The trial will be fully explained to you by one of our researchers
- You will be asked to sign a consent form before any trial assessments are performed
If you are unable to provide informed consent, or sign the form, your family may do this on your behalf.
Randomisation
Participants in the HOME Rehab Trial will receive either a hospital-based or home-based consultation prior to discharge. The home-based consultation offered in this study is different to standard practice after stroke. This trial will compare the practices in discharge planning to determine if one is better than the other.
In order to ensure that there is no bias during the selection of the two groups (hospital-based or home-based), participants are allocated to each group in a way that doesn’t involve a decision by anyone involved in running the trial. This process is called randomisation. The trial researchers have no control over which group you are put in, the randomisation is done by a computer. To find out more information about what randomisation means, you may wish to read information at Australian Clinical Trials.
Once you are registered as a trial participant, you will be asked to complete some questionnaires and functional tasks. You will be asked to complete these assessments as close to admission as possible, and the HOME Rehab Trial will not affect planned discharge dates. After you have completed these questionnaires and tasks, you will be randomised to a study group.
Once you have been randomised, you will then receive your hospital-based or home-based occupational therapy discharge planning.
Hospital based consultation (control group)
If you are in the group that will receive a hospital-based occupational therapy:
- Family members will be asked to provide photographs of internal living areas in your home and access to the home. These photographs and measurements will help your rehabilitation team provide therapy that is matched to your needs.
- The photographs will provide information about existing equipment and home modifications, as well as environmental barriers and ensure you receive your equipment and referrals prior to leaving the hospital.
- An occupational therapist will ask you questions about some of your usual activities that you want to return to doing when you go home. This information will be provided to your rehabilitation team so they can provide therapy that is matched to your needs.
Home based occupational therapy discharge planning (experimental group)
If you are in the group that will receive a home-based occupational therapy:
- Family members will be asked to provide photographs of internal living areas in your home and access to the home. These photographs and measurements will help your rehabilitation team provide therapy that is matched to your needs.
- An occupational therapist will accompany you home in a hospital car to assess your home environment. The assessment will take about 75 minutes. It will include the therapist completing a home safety checklist as well as asking you to perform some of your usual activities while they are there. This information will be provided to your rehabilitation team so they can provide therapy that is matched to your needs, and ensure you receive your equipment and referrals prior to leaving the hospital.
Everyone will receive the usual hospital discharge documents, including a personalised discharge plan and a letter for your GP. The study does not change these processes.
