An Ecological Momentary Assessment Based Program to Support Self-Management for Post-stroke Patients

Combining Machine Learning and Ecological Momentary Assessment of Depression, Cognitive Function and Daily Activity Behavior to Support Self-Management for Post-stroke Patients: A Feasibility Study

The goal of this feasibility study is to test whether a new approach that combines real-time symptom tracking (Ecological Momentary Assessment) with machine learning can help people recovering from a stroke to better manage depression, thinking difficulties, and daily functioning. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Is this combined approach practical and acceptable for post-stroke survivors? Does the program improve mood, cognitive function, or functional ability to carry out daily activities?

Participants will:

Use a smartphone app called RehabCare Companion for a period of time Answer brief daily surveys about their mood, thoughts, and activities for one week Receive personalized self-care suggestions generated by machine learning based on their responses Complete assessments of depression, cognition, and functioning before and after the program Take part in a group interview to share their experiences

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Stroke; Post Stroke
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Ecological Momentary Assessment based Self-management Program

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 50
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Arkers KC Prof. Wong, PhD; Phone Number: +852 34003805; Email: arkers.wong@polyu.edu.hk
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Nuo Dr. Shi, DHSc; Phone Number: +852 34008172; Email: nuo-catherine.shi@polyu.edu.hk

Study Locations

• Hong Kong
  • Hong Kong
    • Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077
      • Recruiting
      • Queen Elizabeth Hospital
      • Contact: Vivian WY Ms. Kwok; Phone Number: +852 34003805; Email: arkers.wong@polyu.edu.hk

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• adults aged 18 years or older
• having a confirmed diagnosis of stroke
• having sufficient proficiency in Cantonese to understand and respond to the assessments and prompts
• having a Hong Kong version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (HK-MoCA) score of 18 or higher
• having a smartphone.

Exclusion Criteria:

• they have moderate to severe cognitive impairment (a HK-MoCA score of 17 or lower)
• they have active psychiatric disorders other than depression (e.g., schizophrenia, bipolar disorder)
• they have a terminal illness or prognosis that suggests a limited life expectancy
• they have conditions that compromise their self-care ability (i.e., bedbound).

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: Ecological Momentary Assessment based Self-management Program

Behavioral: Ecological Momentary Assessment based Self-management Program; The research team collects participants' EMA data (ie., depression, cognitive function, daily activity, and contextual data) from participants for 7-day and analyze the data by machine learning in the first phase, while provide real-time, individualized, self-care messages to the participants via a personalized self-care AI app in the second phase.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Feasibility of the study: acceptance	The acceptance of participants to the program will be measured by recruitment rate, attrition rate, and retention rate.	Immediately after the intervention (T2).
Feasibility of the study: adherence	The adherence of the participants will be evaluated by using the percentage of completed EMA assessments and the frequency of app usage.	Immediately after the intervention (T2).
Feasibility of the study: experience of the participants in using the app	Participants' experience will be assessed through individual interviews.	Immediately after the intervention (T2).

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Preliminary effectiveness: depression Levels	Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) will be used to assess the depression levels of post-stroke patients.	Pre-intervention (T1) and immediately after the intervention (T2).
Preliminary effectiveness: cognitive function	Cognitive function will be screened using Montreal Cognitive Assessment Hong Kong version (HK-MoCA).	Pre-intervention (T1) and immediately after the intervention (T2).
Preliminary effectiveness: disability and functioning	The World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS 2.0) is a widely used instrument for assessing disability and functioning in individuals.	Pre-intervention (T1) and immediately after the intervention (T2).

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Arkers KC Wong, PhD, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 6, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): November 30, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 29, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 2, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 8, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 8, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 2, 2026
• Last Verified: June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Depression; Stroke; Self-management; Cognitive Function; Ecological Momentary Assessment
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Cerebrovascular Disorders; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases; Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior; Stroke; Depression
• Other Study ID Numbers: WZ8L

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No