Early Handling of Stroke in the Community of a Public Health Center in Indonesia

95% of stroke attacks happen in the community. Families, therefore, become the first responders for giving early care to patients when they have a stroke attack. This care can be very influential for stroke patients. This study aimed to explore the kinds of early handling of stroke patients given by families at home. This was a qualitative study with a phenomenology design, and there were six key informants (families which gave early care after strokes) recruited in this study. The data were collected through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions from November 30, 2019 to March 18, 2020. Data were analyzed by content analysis including through matrix, typology, and thematic analysis. Three themes and three stages of early handling of stroke in homes were identified in this study. The early handlings of stroke included medical handling, traditional handling, and combination handling. The early handling stages were stroke symptoms detection, contacting the medical or non-medical staff, and taking patients to the public health facility. The family had enough knowledge about the early handling of stroke. Families should be aware of stroke symptoms so that they can determine the right decision for patients, to reduce the risk of disability and mortality. Keywords: stroke, early handling, family, communit