Active provision of information to stroke survivors favoured over passive approaches

This review found evidence that the addition of active information provision to usual care may slightly improve some important stroke survivor outcomes. Actively providing information may improve knowledge of stroke and stroke services, increase some aspects of stroke survivor satisfaction, slightly reduce cases and symptoms of anxiety and depression in stroke survivors, and improve quality of life.

Active interventions included information courses, interactive follow-up phone conversations or review by stroke nurse specialists.

However, providing information passively may have a slightly negative effect on survivor anxiety and depression. Passive information consisted of generic information provided by pamphlet.

There was no direct evidence comparing active and passive information provision. Observation of the indirect comparison via usual care, which must be interpreted with caution, suggests there may be a divergence of effect on stroke survivor symptoms of anxiety and depression.