Trial reportPloS one2012
Why people do, or do not, immediately contact emergency medical services following the onset of acute stroke: qualitative interview study.
Trial report in PloS one, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 75 citations in OpenAlex.
- Interventions to increase patient and family involvement in escalation of care for acute life-threatening illness in community health and hospital settings.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2020Pooled it
- Why Patients Delay Their First Contact with Health Services After Stroke? A Qualitative Focus Group-Based Study.PloS one · 2016Trial
- Barriers Associated with Help-Seeking for Stroke Symptoms Despite Public Awareness Campaigns: A Cross-Sectional Study.NeuroSci · 2026Article
- Impact of emergency medical services on the prognosis in acute ischemic stroke patients receiving reperfusion therapy or usual treatment: a prospective cohort study.BMC emergency medicine · 2026Article
- Awareness of Stroke Symptoms, Risk Factors, and Utilization of Neuroradiology Services Among the General Public in Saudi Arabia.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Exploring stroke awareness in an ethnic minority population: the impact of language and social support.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Stroke Survivor and Caregiver Perspectives on Seeking Emergency Medical Care.Journal of patient experience · 2026Article
- The use of intervention mapping to guide the development of a school-based intervention to improve emergency medical services activation for stroke.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Observational
- "I didn't even wonder why I was on the floor" - mixed methods exploration of stroke awareness and help-seeking behaviour at stroke symptom onset.BMC health services research · 2024Article
- Symptoms at stroke onset as described by patients: a qualitative study.BMC neurology · 2024Article
- Recognition of visual symptoms in stroke: a challenge to patients, bystanders, and Emergency Medical Services.BMC emergency medicine · 2023Article
- Article
- Receiving or not deemed necessary healthcare services.BMC public health · 2023Article
- Decision-Making in Seeking Emergency Care for Stroke Symptoms.Stroke (Hoboken, N.J.) · 2022Article
- FAST Heroes: Results of Cross-Country Implementation of a Global School-Based Stroke Education Campaign.Frontiers in public health · 2022Article
- Public awareness of early symptoms of acute myocardial infarction among Saudi population.Journal of family medicine and primary care · 2021Article
- "Hesitating and Puzzling": The Experiences and Decision Process of Acute Ischemic Stroke Patients with Prehospital Delay after the Onset of Symptoms.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Patient-reported factors associated with early arrival for stroke treatment.Brain and behavior · 2021Article
- Mistrust of Researchers Correlates with Stroke Knowledge among Minority Seniors in a Community Intervention Trial.Journal of stroke and cerebrovascular diseases : the official journal of National Stroke Association · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectivesTo identify the reasons why individuals contact, or delay contacting, emergency medical services in response to stroke symptoms.
designQualitative interview study with a purposive sample of stroke patients and witnesses, selected according to method of accessing medical care and the time taken to do so. Data were analysed using the Framework approach.
settingArea covered by three acute stroke units in the north east of England.
participantsNineteen stroke patients and 26 witnesses who had called for help following the onset of stroke symptoms.
resultsFactors influencing who called emergency medical services and when they called included stroke severity, how people made sense of symptoms and their level of motivation to seek help. Fear of the consequences of stroke, including future dependence or disruption to family life, previous negative experience of hospitals, or involving a friend or relations in the decision to access medical services, all resulted in delayed admission. Lack of knowledge of stroke symptoms was also an important determinant. Perceptions of the remit of medical services were a major cause of delays in admission, with many people believing the most appropriate action was to telephone their GP. Variations in the response of primary care teams to acute stroke symptoms were also evident.
conclusionsThe factors influencing help-seeking decisions are complex. There remains a need to improve recognition by patients, witnesses and health care staff of the need to treat stroke as a medical emergency by calling emergency medical services, as well as increasing knowledge of symptoms of stroke among patients and potential witnesses. Fear, denial and reticence to impose on others hinders the process of seeking help and will need addressing specifically with appropriate interventions. Variability in how primary care services respond to stroke needs further investigation to inform interventions to promote best practice.
trial registrationUK Clinical Research Network UKCRN 6590.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.