Stroke Care Management: Motivation and Engagement

What is this article about?

Lack of motivation can impact negatively on the individual’s participation in rehabilitation and recovery phases post-stroke. Decreased participation and engagement during rehabilitation greatly influences the level of function gained, length of hospital stay, mood and discharge destination. Motivation is the drive or reason that a patient has to participate in their rehabilitation. However, motivation levels can be negatively affected by apathy and depression, which are commonly seen in the stroke patient population. In literature and in clinical practice, the terms depression and apathy; are often used interchangeably. In psychiatric medicine, apathy is viewed as a symptom of depression. Neurologically, there are distinct differences between these two phenomena.