Platform Presentation The Joint Annual Meeting of the Stroke Society of Australasia (SSA) and Smartstrokes 2023

In Search of a Gold Standard Stroke Knowledge Assessment Tool: Preliminary data from a COSMIN Systematic Review (#103)

Catherine Burns 1 , Lachlan Dalli 1 , Monique Kilkenny 1 2 , Wen-Hsuan Hou 3 , Muideen Olaiya 1 , Seana Gall 4 , Jan Cameron 1 , Tara Purvis 1 , Tammy Hoffman 5 , Hoang Phan 4 , Mark Nelson 4 , Amanda Thrift 1 , Andrea Sanders 6 , Rosanne Freak-Poli 1
  1. Monash University, Clayton, VICTORIA, Australia
  2. Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  3. Department of Geriatrics and Gerontology, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan
  4. Menzies Institute of Medical Research, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
  5. Institute for Evidence-Based Healthcare, Bond University, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
  6. Stroke Foundation, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Background: Stroke knowledge includes an understanding of risk factors, signs of stroke, and the need for prompt medical care. Assessment of stroke knowledge may assist with evaluation of targeted education programs to prevent stroke, but this requires valid and reliable knowledge assessment tools. 

Aims: To systematically review contemporary stroke knowledge assessment tools and appraise their psychometric properties.

Methods: The protocol was registered in Prospero (CRD42023403566). Electronic databases (MEDLINE, PsycInfo, CINAHL, Embase, Scopus and Web of Science) were searched to identify articles published between 1 January 2015 and 1 March 2023. Eligible articles were those in which stroke knowledge was assessed using a validated stroke knowledge assessment tool. Two reviewers independently screened the titles and abstracts using Covidence. Agreement was measured using the Kappa (k) statistic. Discrepancies were resolved by a third reviewer. Prior to exclusion at full text review, authors of identified articles were contacted to obtain a copy of the tool (where not publicly available). Psychometric properties of the tools will be appraised using the COSMIN checklist.

Results: After removing duplicates, titles and abstracts of 715 articles were screened for eligibility, with 90% agreement between reviewers (k=0.79). Of 320 articles that were reviewed in full, 259 were excluded (97% agreement between reviewers; k=0.90). Of the articles excluded, 181 (70%) did not use a validated tool to assess stroke knowledge, 40 (15%) had no assessment of stroke knowledge, and 21 (8%) were an ineligible type of article (e.g. conference abstract). From 61 articles pending inclusion (author contact required), 16 validated tools have been obtained. This review is currently in progress. The appraisal of psychometric properties of included tools will be provided at the conference. 

Conclusion: This review will inform the appropriate use of current tools or the need to develop a gold-standard stroke knowledge assessment tool for the Australian context.