Lay summary
My career goal is to become a leading clinical researcher and academic neurologist. Completing a PhD in stroke rehabilitation is crucial to achieving this goal. My PhD is focused on coordinating a multi-centre randomised controlled trial of the Take Charge Session (TCS) on stroke recovery and physical outcomes. A single TCS has been proven effective in Maori and Pacific patients in improving quality of life and functional ability after stroke. It is a simple tool that facilitates patient engagement and empowerment of their condition by setting individual goals and showing ways to achieve them. This is a powerful mechanism for tackling health inequalities beyond sociodemographic barriers and has the potential of reducing post-stroke dependence by 500 people per year. The TACAS study also allows health providers to continue performance improvement and sharing of ideas through auditing and discussing our post-stroke care practices.