Stroke and Rehabilitation Research Group
The Stroke and Rehabilitation Research group (SRR) brings together a group of highly skilled researchers working in the area of stroke care and recovery and in rehabilitation more broadly. The purpose of our group is to foster a collaborative and supportive environment for applied, interdisciplinary research into stroke and rehabilitation. Our research interests includes stroke care, particularly as it relates to allied health interventions across the continuum of acute hospitalisation, rehabilitation care and long term health and well -being of stroke survivors. From the wider rehabilitation perspectives we also have interest and expertise in driving and dementia, and preventing falls and fall injury. Because of our research links, we are able to undertake translational and implementation research – taking information from the neuroscience bench or the published evidence into the clinical or community setting. We have specialist knowledge and skills in randomised controlled trials in clinical settings, neurophysiological assessments (including transcranial magnetic stimulation [TMS]]), qualitative research methods and mixed method designs. We are a dynamic and enthusiastic team of researchers, all with strong clinical backgrounds. We are passionate about promoting research and evidence generation in both stroke and rehabilitation more broadly, which is relevant and applied to the clinical setting.
People
Research Leaders
Dr Susan Hillier
Susan teaches and researches in the area of clinical neuroscience.
She also maintains a small clinical practice offering rehabilitation for
children and adults with sensory and motor disorders which informs her
academic work. He research interests are in exploring new areas of
rehabilitation that promote neuroplasticity and behavioural change. Such
interventions include sensory retraining, training intensity, or alternate
methods such as yoga or music therapy. She is also interested in service
delivery and uses her methodology skills to work with guideline production,
evidence reviews and implementation of best practice.
Shylie is a researcher and teacher whose expertise lies broadly with the prevention of falls in people with stroke and older people in general as well as exercise therapy as a rehabilitation tool. She is interested in both primary research investigating interventions as well as how to translate research evidence into practice
Postdoctoral Fellows
Dr Michelle McDonnell
Michelle is a neurological physiotherapist and neuroscientist. She in
exploring the benefits of exercise on the brain in healthy adults and
the potential to promote neuroplasticity following stroke. This research
utilises the technique transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and
Michelle collaborates closely with researchers at the University of
Adelaide and the Centre for Physical Activity in Ageing.
Dr Coralie English
An experienced physiotherapist, Coralie's research areas of interest are
maximising physical activity during stroke rehabilitation and in
community dwelling stroke survivors. She is currently Trial Manager of
the CIRCIT trial (Circuit class therapy for Increasing Rehabilitation
Intensity of Therapy trial). Her postdoctoral work is focussed on
investigating patterns of accumulation of sedentary time and the impact
of this on health and cardiometabolic markers in stroke survivors.
PhD Candidates
Julie Luker
Julie is a physiotherapist with extensive experience in acute stroke
management and rehabilitation and is actively involved in stroke service
planning and development. Julie's PhD research investigates the factors
which impact on the quality of acute stroke care provided by allied
health professionals.
Caroline Fryer
Caroline is a physiotherapist who has worked with people after stroke in
both acute care and rehabilitation in both urban and regional contexts.
Caroline worked as a research physiotherapist on a multi-site trial
which investigated falls prevention for people with stroke living in the
community. Caroline's PhD research explores the healthcare experience
after stroke for older people with limited English proficiency.
Liz Lynch
Liz is a physiotherapist with extensive experience in inpatient stroke
rehabilitation, with a particular interest in translating evidence into
clinical practice. Liz's PhD research will be investigating implementing
best practice in stroke care through the provision of an assessment for
rehabilitation for every stroke survivor.
Research Associates
Carolyn Murray
Carolyn is an occupational therapist with clinical experience in
provision of long term care and management of people living in the
community with stroke. She has co-supervised honours students Linda
Schouten and independently supervised Shoshanna Williams.
Honours Students
2012/2013
Gabrielle Brunner: Therapist-devised exercise programs
conducted by family members for inpatients following an acquired brain
injury: a pilot RCT.
2011/2012
Leanne Cavanagh - Stroke survivors' perspectives on two novel
models of inpatient rehabilitation: seven-day a week therapy or five-day
a week circuit class therapy.
Kylie Wall - Screening cognitive skills in early stroke.
2010/2011
Gurpreet Kaur - "Umm, about an hour?" How accurate are
physiotherapists at estimating therapy time in rehabilitation after
stroke?
Shoshanna Williams - The lived experience of occupational adaptation for
people living in the community following stroke.
2009/2010
Laura Fisher - Intra-rater reliability of sonographic measures
and early changes in muscle thickness in individuals hospitalised after
stroke.
2008/2009
Linda Schouten - Overcoming the long term effects of stroke:
Qualitative perceptions of involvement in a group rehabilitation
programme.
2007/2008
Holly McLennan - The reliability and feasibility of using
ultrasound to measure skeletal muscle thickness in persons early after
stroke.
2006/2007
Tony Elson - An observational analysis of activity levels
during group circuit class therapy and individual physiotherapy sessions
for stroke survivors receiving inpatient rehabilitation.
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Some of our key collaborators include:
- Stroke Division, Florey Neuroscience Institutes
- Virtual International Stroke Trials Archive (VISTA-Rehab)
- Nutritional Physiology Research Centre
- National Ageing Research Institute, Victoria
- The Discipline of Physiology and the Neuroplasticity, Development and Repair groups of the University of Adelaide
- Centre for Physical Activity in Ageing, Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre
Some of our key projects and interests include:
Increased levels of physical activity has the potential to prevent
disability and recurrent strokes. However, a number of issues including
physical impairments may limit post-stroke exercise and recovery. We are
investigating attitudes of stroke survivors towards exercising after stroke,
in an effort to identify barriers to participation in exercise in people
following stroke. This will help to guide public policy regarding the design
and likely success of programs to increase physical activity following
stroke.
CIRCIT trial
(Circuit class therapy for Increasing Rehabilitation Intensity of Therapy. A
pragmatic randomised controlled trial)
Researchers:
Susan Hillier, Coralie English, Maria Crotty (Department of Rehabilitation
and Aged Care, Flinders University), Leonie Segal (Health Economics and
Policy Group, UniSA), Julie Bernhardt (Stroke Division, Florey Neuroscience
Institutes), Adrian Esterman (Sansom Research Institute)
For people receiving rehabilitation after stroke,
maximizing the amount of physical therapy they receive is vital to
maximizing their functional outcomes. But the most effective and
cost-effective way of organizing therapy services to maximize patient
therapy input is not known. This exciting and novel trial is comparing
different models of delivering a greater amount of physical therapy
(mobility and upper limb related) to people in rehabilitation post-stroke.
These are: Usual care therapy (5 days a week), Usual care therapy provided
over 7 days a week and Group circuit class therapy (up to 3 hours day, 5
days a week). The trial is currently running at three sites in Adelaide, one
in Perth and one in Melbourne.
EPIPS (Exploring Patterns of Inactivity in People after Stroke)
Researchers:
Coralie English, Julie Bernhardt (Stroke Division, Florey Neuroscience
Institutes), Alison Coates (Nutritional Physiology Research Centre), Tim
Olds (Health and Use of Time group)
Sitting time is detrimental to our health, and stroke
survivors are among the most sedentary members of society. This
observational study is using state of the art technology to objectively
measure patterns of activity and sedentary time as well as energy
expenditure and use-of-time in people living in the community with
stroke-related disability.
Music therapy in stroke
Researchers:
Susan Hillier. Leah Trotta (Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre , Susan Cameron
(RAH)
Music therapy can have a positive effect on mood and
mental health status. This pilot RCT is investigating the feasibility and
preliminary effectiveness of music therapy on an inpatient stroke
rehabilitation ward. Outcomes of interest are quality of life and mood
indicators.
EXSTRaCOG (Exercise to improve cognition following stroke)
Researchers:
Michelle McDonnell, Shylie Mackintosh, Susan Hillier, Adrian Esterman, Jon
Buckley, Michael Ridding (The University of Adelaide), Robert Penhall
(Centre for Physical Activity in Ageing), Bob Barnard (Centre for Physical
Activity in Ageing), Janet Bryan (Psychology, UniSA)
Regular physical activity is associated with improved
cognitive performance throughout the lifespan, but can it help those 66% of
people following stroke who suffer from cognitive impairment? This
randomised controlled trial will investigate the potential benefits of
exercise on cognition and the mechanisms involved, including vascular and
neuroplastic mechanisms.
PLEX: Plasticity and Exercise
Researchers:
Michelle McDonnell, Jon Buckley, Michael Ridding (The University of
Adelaide), John Semmler (The University of Adelaide)
Individuals who regularly undertake large amounts of
physical activity have a greater potential for plasticity within the motor
areas of the brain, but can one session confer benefits as well?
This study investigates whether a single session of aerobic exercise
increases excitability and neuroplasticity in the motor cortex. A second
phase of the study will involve people following stroke to determine whether
exercise can promote functionally beneficial plasticity and improve learning
post-stroke.
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Coralie English. coralie.english@unisa.edu.au
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