Patients' outcome expectations and their fulfilment in multidisciplinary stroke rehabilitation.
BACKGROUND
Patients' expectations of the outcomes of rehabilitation may influence the outcomes and satisfaction with treatment.


OBJECTIVES
For stroke patients in multidisciplinary rehabilitation, we aimed to explore patients' outcome expectations and their fulfilment as well as determinants.


METHODS
The Stroke Cohort Outcomes of REhabilitation (SCORE) study included consecutive stroke patients admitted to an inpatient rehabilitation facility after hospitalisation. Outcome expectations were assessed at the start of rehabilitation (admission) by using the three-item Expectancy scale (sum score range 3-27) of the Credibility/Expectancy Questionnaire (CEQ). After rehabilitation, patients answered the same questions formulated in the past tense to assess fulfilment of expectations. Baseline patient characteristics were recorded and health-related quality of life (EQ-5D) was measured at baseline and after rehabilitation. The number of patients with expectations unfulfilled or fulfilled or exceeded was computed by subtracting the admission and discharge CEQ Expectancy scores. Multivariable regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with outcome expectations and their fulfilment, estimating odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).


RESULTS
We included 165 patients (96 males [58.2%], mean (SD) age 60.2 years [12.7]) who completed the CEQ Expectancy instrument at admission (median score 21.6, interquartile range [IQR] 17.0-24.0); 79 completed it both at admission (median score 20.6, IQR 16.6-24.4) and follow-up (median score 20.0, IQR 16.4-22.8). For 40 (50.6%) patients, expectations of therapy were fulfilled or exceeded. No patient characteristic at admission was associated with baseline CEQ Expectancy score. Odds of expectation fulfilment were associated with low expectations at admission (OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.60-0.83) and improved EQ-5D score (OR 1.35, 95% CI 1.04-0.75).


CONCLUSIONS
In half of the stroke patients in multidisciplinary rehabilitation, expectations were fulfilled or exceeded, most likely in patients with low expectations at admission and with improved health-related quality of life. More research into the role of health professionals regarding the measurement, shaping and management of outcome expectations is needed.
['Groeneveld|Iris F|IF|', 'Goossens|Paulien H|PH|', 'van Braak|Inke|I|', 'van der Pas|Stéphanie|S|', 'Meesters|Jorit J L|JJL|', 'Rambaran Mishre|Radha D|RD|', 'Arwert|Henk J|HJ|', 'Vliet Vlieland|Thea P M|TPM|', '|||']
D004185:Disability Evaluation D005260:Female D006801:Humans D007297:Inpatients D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D009042:Motivation D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care D010348:Patient Care Team D011788:Quality of Life D020521:Stroke D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires D016896:Treatment Outcome
Expectations Stroke Rehabilitation “Health-related quality of life” “Stroke rehabilitation”