A survey of ‘standard’ occupational therapy rehabilitation for the upper limb post-stroke: investigating components delivered by clinicians within the reflects trial - based throughout Ireland (in World Stroke Congress Abstracts, 2020)

Background And Aims: The REfLECTS study is a randomised controlled trial (RCT) examining mirror therapy for the treatment of upper limb (UL) impairment. Located throughout Northern Ireland (NI) and Ireland, the study compares experimental and ‘standard’ treatments. Until the 2019 SUPPLES-UK survey (n ¼154, with 2 from NI), there has been a lack of understanding regarding the composition of ‘standard’ therapy in UL rehabilitation post-stroke. This, along with an under reporting of the components of standard treatment, has led to problems in the design and interpretation of RCT’s. This study aimed to: define the components of ‘standard’ UL therapy provided by NI and Ireland based occupational therapists (OTs) within the REfLECTS team; analyse cross-jurisdictional approaches; and compare results with current therapy across the UK.Methods: Permission was granted by the authors of the SUPPLES-UK survey, to devise an adapted survey comprising 16 open/closed and multiple-choice questions. This would facilitate UK comparison.Results: Nine OTs completed our cross-jurisdictional survey. Respondents, on average, spent 60% of clinical time working with stroke survivors (70% in UK), and spent 22.5 minutes providing UL treatments (28.9 in UK) over 3.9 days per week (3 in UK). Respondents utilised functional activity practice and repetitive task training most regularly; correlating closely with current UK practice.Conclusions: The results demonstrate that ‘standard’ therapy within the REfLECTS trial, reflects current UL therapy delivered clinically throughout the UK. This will enhance the validity of the REfLECTS trial results and replicability of the study. The authors plan to inform future research by replicating the SUPPLES-UK survey throughout Ireland