Using social interaction in rehabilitation to improve stroke patients motivation

Abstract

Rehabilitation for stroke is important for recovery, but for patients, living their daily life independently after stroke is not an easy task. Difficulty accepting their new condition, facing the changes of roles and self-concept are mentioned as psychological challenges that lead to low social interaction affecting relations around them. Additionally, low levels of emotional support may cause depression and decrease motivation. It has been proven that sufficient social support can influence the training outcome resulting in better performance, and a faster recovery. The aim of this study is (1) to explore the concept of sharing in rehabilitation at the purpose of improving patients’ motivation through (2) developing a user-friendly tangible device to train their upper limbs fine motor (ULFM) skills. This study focuses on both the development of the rehabilitation training device, and collection and comparison of data of their interaction with patients and the patient motivation levels.