Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-fscjk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-24T02:31:49.619Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Analysis of One Stroke Survivor's Transition into Vocational Experiences

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 June 2012

Louise Gustafsson  and
Merrill Turpin
Louise Gustafsson*
Affiliation:
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, The University of Queensland, Australia
Merrill Turpin
Affiliation:
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, The University of Queensland, Australia
*
Address for correspondence: Louise Gustafsson, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia QLD 4072, Australia. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

Background and Aims: Return to work presents a unique transition for the person with mild stroke who is often unsupported and does not anticipate difficulties from hidden impairments. The aim of this study was to explore the return to work experience from the perspective of one person with mild stroke.

Methods: An inductive thematic analysis was undertaken with a narrative of e-mail correspondence from a person with mild stroke. The analysis follows the participant from three to six years after stroke during a process of upskilling and training for return to work.

Results: The female participant was 32 years old at the time of stroke and returned to tertiary studies after experiencing difficulties with initial return to work. Four themes emerged from the analysis of the narrative: I don't know which identity to choose, My anxieties and reactions, I need support and structure, and I am exhausted.

Discussion: The results demonstrate the impact of hidden impairments on the struggle to reconcile a past with present identity. The process of reconciliation was ongoing and dependent on work-based experiences that enhanced understanding of strengths and limitations, and required adaptations. The impact of fatigue on performance in work and non-work time was highlighted.

Type
Articles
Information
Brain Impairment , Volume 13 , Issue 1: Transition to Community Living after Acquired Brain Injury , July 2012 , pp. 99 - 107
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Alaszewski, A., Alaszewski, H., Potter, J., & Penhale, B. (2007). Working after a stroke: Survivors’ experiences and perceptions of barriers to and facilitators of return to paid employment. Disability and Rehabilitation, 29 (24), 1858–1869.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carlsson, G.E., Möller, A., & Blomstrand, C. (2009). Managing an everyday life of uncertainty: A qualitative study of coping in persons with mild stroke. Disability and Rehabilitation, 31 (10), 773–782.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Christiansen, C.H. (1999). Defining lives: Occupation as identity. An essay on competence, coherence, and the creation of meaning. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 14, 547–557.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cott, C., Wiles, R., & Devitt, R. (2007). Continuity, participation and transition: Preparing clients for life in the community post-stroke. Disability and Rehabilitation, 29, 1566–1574.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Creswell, J.W. (2007). Qualitative inquiry & research design. Choosing among five approaches (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Creswell, J.W., & Plano Clark, V.L. (2011). Designing and conducting mixed methods research. (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Edwards, D.C., Hahn, M., Baum, C., & Dromerick, A.W. (2006). the impact of mild stroke on meaningful activity and life satisfaction. Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disease, 15, 151–157.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gilworth, G., Phil, M., Cert, A., Sansam, K., & Kent, R. (2009). Personal experiences of returning to work following stroke: An exploratory study. Work, 34, 95–103.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hammel, J. (1999). The Life Rope: A transactional approach to exploring worker and life role development. Work, 12 (1), 47–60.Google Scholar
Hoogerdijk, B., Runge, U., & Haugboelle, J. (2011). The adaption process after traumatic brain injury. An individual and ongoing occupational struggle to gain a new identity. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 18 (2), 122–132.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Huberman, A.M., & Miles, M.B. (2004). The Qualitative Researcher's Companion. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Johansson, U., & Tham, K. (2006). The meaning of work after acquired brain injury. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 60 (1), 60–69.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kielhofner, G. (2002). A model of human occupation: Theory and application (3rd ed.). Baltimore, M.A.: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.Google Scholar
Koch, L., Egbert, N., Coeling, H., & Ayers, D. (2005). Returning to work after the onset of illness: Experiences of right hemisphere stroke survivors. Rehabilitation Counselling Bulletin, 48 (4), 209–218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McMahon, R., & Slowinski Crown, D. (1998). Return to work factors following stroke. Topics in Stroke Rehabilitation, 5 (2), 54–60.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Medin, J., Barajas, J., & Ekberg, K. (2006). Stroke patients' experiences of return to work. Disability and Rehabilitation, 28 (17), 1051–1060.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Muus, I., Petzhold, M., & Ringsberg, K.C. (2010). Health-related quality of life among Danish patients 3 and 12 months after TIA or mild stroke. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences, 24, 211–218.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
O'Brien, A.N., & Wolf, T.J. (2010). Determining work outcomes in mild to moderate stroke survivors. Work, 36, 441–447.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ownsworth, T., & Shum, D. (2007). Relationship between executive functions and productivity outcomes following stroke. Disability and Rehabilitation, 30 (7), 531–540.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robison, J., Wiles, R., Ellis-Hill, K., McPherson, K., Hyndman, D., & Ashburn, A. (2009). Resuming previously valued activities post-stroke: Who or what helps? Disability and Rehabilitation, 19, 1555–1566.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rubenson, C., Svensson, E., Linddahl, I., & Björklund, A. (2007). Experiences of returning to work after acquired brain injury. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 14, 205–214.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Saeki, S. (2000). Disability management after stroke: its medical aspects for workplace accommodation. Disability and Rehabilitation, 22, 578–582.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sandstrom, U., Stalsby Lundborg, C., Axelsson, R., & Homstrom, I. (2007). Variation in views on clients in interprofessional work for vocational rehabilitation in Sweden. Journal of Interprofessional Care, 21 (5), 479–489.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Soeker, M.S. (2011). Occupational Adaptation: A Return to Work Perspective of Persons with Mild to Moderate Brain Injury in South Africa. Journal of Occupational Science, 18 (1), 81–91.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Treger, I., Shames, J., Giaquinto, S., & Ring, H. (2007). Return to work in stroke patients. Disability and Rehabilitation, 29 (17), 1397–1403.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vestling, M., Ramel, E., & Iwarsson, S. (2005). Quality of life after stroke: Well-being, life satisfaction, and subjective aspects of work. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 12, 89–95.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed