Welcome to the Specialist Community Stroke Rehabilitation Team.  This information aims to answer some of the questions you may have about the service.

Who is the Team for?

People with a new stroke who …

  • Have identified rehabilitation goals requiring specialist input on discharge from hospital.
  • Can safely be cared for at home. 
  • Have a GP within the South Cheshire and Vale Royal area.
  • Are 18 years and over.
  • Are medically stable.

  • To provide specialist treatment, support, information and advice to people following a stroke, in a community setting.
  • To ensure patients receive a high quality standard of care.
  • We do this by working with you to achieve your own personal goals, listening and respecting your views, aiming to improve your quality of life by offering …
  • Support in adjusting to returning to live at home.
  • Support in important areas of lifestyle eg. driving, work and social life.
  • Help in identifying and addressing specific goals to improve your independence and quality of life.
  • Advice for you and your carer or family/friends.
  • Information and support to help you access community and voluntary services.
  • Provide a point of contact for support and advice for you and your family.

  • GPs
  • Hospital Consultant
  • Hospital Therapy Staff
  • Stroke Association

The team is made up of professionals with a specialist knowledge and experience of stroke.

Physiotherapy

A member of the Physiotherapy team will assess your current physical abilities and work with you on a programme to enable you to achieve your maximum physical potential. This will include exercise, support and advice on self-management specific to your individual needs.

Occupational Therapy

A member of the Occupational Therapy team will assess your everyday activities and develop a programme to promote further independence. This may include practical advice, equipment provision or therapy specific to your individual needs.

Speech and Language Therapy

A member of the Speech and Language Therapy team will assess your communication skills.  They will work with you to help improve any difficulties with speech and language, reading or writing.  An individualised therapy plan will help you to function as well as possible in your environment.  Any difficulties with eating, drinking or swallowing will be assessed and appropriate advice given to help you eat and drink as safely as possible.  This may include practical advice about specialised feeding utensils and suitable diet and fluid textures.

See also Adult Speech and Language Therapy

Nursing

The Team nurse will be involved with any advice and help you need with medications management and reducing the risk of further cardiovascular illness.

Psychology

The Team has a dedicated Cognitive Behavioural Therapist who can offer support with the psychological effects of stroke for the user or their immediate family.

Dietetics

A Dietitian is available to provide dietary advice when requested.  Support is offered to those losing weight unintentionally or to those requiring modified consistency diet and fluids.  Dietetic support is also available for conditions including high blood pressure, raised cholesterol levels and diabetes.  Individuals can also be seen by the Dietitian for healthy eating advice and dietary advice related to reducing risk of having another stroke in the future. 

Experienced Rehab Assistants

Rehab Assistants are trained in Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy.  They will carry out your therapy programme with you after your initial assessments.

Social Worker

A Social Worker will be allocated to you if needed to support you and your family with your care and social needs.

The team can remain actively involved with you for up to 16 weeks if required.

We will provide the appropriate amount of input from the appropriate staff members to work towards the achievement of agreed goals which we will discuss and review with you on a regular basis.

Treatment can occur in a variety of settings, this can be your own home or in a clinic as an out-patient eg Eagle Bridge in Crewe, Victoria Infirmary in Northwich, and Leighton Hospital in Crewe.  You may also be offered group activities as well as individual treatment sessions.

If we refer you to other health or social care professionals, we may need to share your records with them.  Records may be held on computer, or in the form of written notes.  This service is also part of a national audit programme (Stroke Sentinel National Audit Programme) which aims to facilitate the standardisation of good practice.

Sharing information will only happen with your agreement, unless there are exceptional circumstances such as health and safety risk to you or others.

If you have a complaint, concern, comment or compliment, please let us know by speaking to a member of our staff.  We learn from your feedback and use the information to improve and develop our services.

The Customer Care Team can be contacted in a number of ways…

Telephone: 01270 612410 (24 hour answer machine)

Email: customercareteam@mcht.nhs.uk

Website: an online feedback form is available on MCHFT’s website

Write: Customer Care Team, Leighton Hospital, Middlewich Road, Crewe, Cheshire, CW1 4QJ

The Customer Care Team is available:

Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm (excluding weekends and Bank Holidays)

What happens at my first appointment?

  • A member of the team will contact you, usually by telephone to arrange an appointment either in your home or at Eagle Bridge Health and Wellbeing Centre, Crewe.
  • The initial visit will be an assessment and will take approximately one hour.  It may not include any treatment.
  • A relative, friend or carer may be present if you wish.
  • A treatment plan and treatment goals will be discussed and agreed with you if appropriate.
  • A referral will be made to other team members or other services as appropriate.

How will my follow up appointment be arranged?

If you need further appointments, a mutually convenient appointment time is usually arranged between you and your Therapist. You may be seen by a different Therapist. The team will use a timetable to co-ordinate appointments.

What do I do if I cannot keep my appointment?

If you are unable keep your appointment, you must contact the Specialist Community Stroke Rehabilitation Team on 01270 826205 as soon as possible to cancel your appointment.

How long will my treatment session last?

Patients will have a treatment time of approximately 30-45 minutes but this does vary depending on your goals and treatment required.

Please make sure you are available for treatment when your Therapist arrives as they have a full day of appointments booked and may not be able to wait for you to be available.

How many treatment sessions will I have?

The Therapist will agree treatment goals with you and will review your progress at each visit. The number of sessions depends on your progression.