Special donor makes stroke recovery research possible
How do you ensure that people who have had a stroke get the right therapy at the right time? This is the question researcher Jorit Meesters wants to answer. The aim? For more patients to be able to use their arms and hands again after a stroke.
Prof.dr. J.M.Th. van Maanen Fund
Meesters, who works for LUMC and is a reader in Revalidation and Technology at The Hague University of Applied Sciences, is able to do his research thanks to a grant from the Prof.dr. J.M.Th. van Maanen Fund, which is managed by the Leids University Fund (LUF). The fund is named after Prof. van Maanen, Professor Emeritus of Nursing Science, who herself has suffered a stroke.
After a stroke, many people experience a rigid or floppy hand or an arm that cannot do much. ‘The right therapy at the right time can mean your arm-hand function recovers well in the first six months after the stroke,’ Meesters says. This therapy can be given very intensively in revalidation centres. But 90 per cent of patients do not go to such centres. ‘How can we ensure that they too benefit from practitioners’ expertise?’
Physiotherapy and technology
Physiotherapists could be an important part of the rehabilitation process. ‘But not everyone can go to physio five times per week and the functional exercises have to be done very intensively.’ Apps or other technology (Meesters’ expertise) could be part of the solution. As a side note, not all patients are good with technology, especially when hand problems come into play. ‘So this research should first identify all the barriers to the rehabilitation process so we can then work on solutions because if you don’t understand the problem, technology is never the solution.’
Researcher and fund founder meet
Meesters, who has spent many years working in rehabilitation care, will start his literature survey in November. This will be followed by interviews with health professionals and people who have had a stroke. This makes it all the more special that his research is funded by a grant provided by Prof. van Maanen, whom Meesters recently met.
‘She told me what she would have liked to have seen in her rehabilitation process. But as she has so much experience, the conversation soon broadened to the organisation of healthcare. She has really clear ideas about that, which I am definitely going to use.’
‘Her eyes lit up as we spoke, which was great to see’
Meesters originally trained as a physiotherapist and Prof. van Maanen as a nurse, so both are paramedics. ‘We are both used to having to put up a bit of a fight for our position at the patient’s bedside as it is − she as a woman even more so in her day. Her eyes lit up as we spoke, which was great to see.’
Accessible health care
Accessible health care is one of the biggest challenges of our time and Meesters’ research can help resolve this. Treatment in the acute phase of a stroke is improving, so the group with severe symptoms is shrinking. However, the group with less serious symptoms, such as people who can’t use their hands and arms very well, is growing.
‘The strength of this research is that we bring together people from science and practice. We can share the knowledge we acquire at The Hague University of Applied Sciences with, for instance, our network of paramedics, Neuronet [network for patients with congenital brain injury, Ed.], our programmes and the LUMC, where I also work.’
‘Keep up the momentum’
The aim is for this research on the bottlenecks within rehabilitation to be followed by a study of solutions. And that is something that Prof. van Maanen also insisted on, ‘Keep up the momentum because identifying the problems is not a goal in itself’, says Meesters. ‘That’s how I see it too. We are going to do very thorough research but the goal in the end is for people like her to get the best help possible.’
Your own named fund?
Leiden University Fund has a number of specific targets or named funds. The donor decides on the fund’s name and target, which is a specific assignment. This makes it possible to earmark substantial gifts.
Named funds are set up for various reasons: to remember a loved one, to live on in science or to support a field of research that is close to one’s heart. Donors also choose very specific targets such as research on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), international human rights and congenital heart defects.
Perhaps you are considering setting up a Named Fund or contributing to an existing one. For more information, contact Eliane Cohen at e.c.cohen@luf.leidenuniv.nl, and for more information, visit the Leiden University Fund (LUF) site.
Text: Tim Senden
Photos: Monique Shaw