Stroke survivors' preferences for post-stroke self-management programs: A discrete choice experiment.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Self-management programs enhance survival in stroke patients. However, they require patient-centered designs to be effective. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the type of post-stroke self-management programs that appeal to stroke survivors, and to estimate their willingness to participate in such programs. METHODS: A Discrete Choice Experiment was administered to patients who had either a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or stroke within the past 3 years and were cognitively intact (i.e., stroke survivors). Stroke survivors were presented with eight choice tasks and asked to choose between 'No Program' and two hypothetical post-stroke management programs that varied by six attributes: Topics covered by the program; schedule of the program; frequency and duration of the sessions; number of participants; out-of-pocket registration fee for the whole program; and rewards for completing the program. RESULTS: The analysis involved 146 stroke survivors. Based on the mixed logit model, the predicted willingness to participate ranged from 53% to 76%. The most popular characteristics in a program were topics on health education and risk management, being scheduled during weekends as four sessions that are each 2 hours long and involve four participants, a registration fee of SGD50 (∼USD36), and SGD500 (∼USD359) reward for program completion. CONCLUSIONS: Interest in post-stroke self-management programs was high, with at least half of the sample showing interest in participating in these programs. Program features such as focusing on health education and risk management, charging a low registration fee, and offering incentives helped to increase the demand.

Understanding and mitigating negative affect in preventive health behaviors: Evidence from the COVID-19 vaccination process.

The study investigated the willingness for vaccine uptake during the COVID-19 pandemic (April-June 2021), and explored the effect of both mindfulness and health education in managing negative affect post-vaccination. In study 1, a sample of 468 Chinese college students completed a one-time survey, assessing loneliness, stress, medical fear, and vaccination likelihood. Results showed that medical fear mediated the relationship between loneliness, stress and vaccination likelihood. In study 2, 70 college students were randomly assigned to one of three intervention conditions (mindfulness, health education, and control) during vaccination. Participants in mindfulness group showed lower negative affect scores than the control group post-intervention (p = 0.019). However, no significant difference was reported between health education with the other two conditions. As such, medical fear would be an important factor to target for improving the likelihood of vaccine uptake. Furthermore, a short mindfulness intervention was effective to improve experience of vaccination through mitigating negative affect.

Exploring the Use of Virtual Reality for the Delivery and Practice of Stress-Management Exercises.

Background: Mindfulness-based interventions may benefit healthcare professionals with burnout symptoms. Virtual reality (VR) may reduce initial difficulty of engaging in mindfulness exercises and increase participants' engagement through immersion and presence. Aim: The aim was to investigate how VR affects participants' experience of engagement with mindfulness practice, and its impact on quality of practice and negative mood states. Methods: Fifty-one healthcare professionals were randomized to receive either a visualization or non-visualization mindfulness practice, to compare the quality of practice through the use of audio only vs. with a virtual reality interface. Selected self-reported measures were collected during the session (immersion, quality and difficulty of practice, mood states and likelihood for future practice). Results: Results showed that order instead of type of modality administered made a difference in quality of mindfulness practice. A greater sense of presence was reported with VR if administered after audio (F = 4.810, p = 0.033, Partial η2 = 0.093). Further, participants described difficulty practicing with audio if administered after VR (F = 4.136, p = 0.048, Partial η2 = 0.081). Additionally, lower mood disturbance was reported with VR if administered after audio (F = 8.116, p = 0.006, Partial η2 = 0.147). Qualitative responses echoed a preference for VR to engage better, in addition to improved mood states after practice. Conclusion: Findings suggest that VR has the potential to provide healthcare professionals with an alternative or a supplement to conventional mindfulness practice.

Corrigendum: Exploring the Use of Virtual Reality for the Delivery and Practice of Stress-Management Exercises.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.640341.].