Information use in discharge accommodation recommendations for stroke patients

The discharge of stroke patients to appropriate accommodation presents rehabilitation teams with a difficult task, as clinical recommendations concerning accommodation may have a considerable impact on patients’ future lifestyle and independence. A Social Judgment Theory task was employed to identify the informational cues considered by 82 rehabilitation professionals when making accommodation decisions for stroke patients at discharge from rehabilitation. Several factors, including patient mobility, social supports and activity of daily living (ADL) status, were found to be highly weighted in this decision. However, there were substantial individual differences in the weighting by the study participants of informational cues. These differences were not consistently attributable to profession or experience.