First Assessment
Free
45 minutes, at home
- Full clinical examination at the patient's home
- The likely cause explained in plain language
- A realistic recovery plan and what it will cost
- No obligation to book any further sessions
A stroke is treated first in a hospital, but recovery happens afterwards in an ordinary home. For many families on NIBM Road that means a flat on the fourth or eighth floor, a lift shared with the whole building, an attached bathroom with a step at the door and a bedroom that has to double as a treatment room. These details decide how quickly a patient can start doing things for themselves again.
Our stroke rehabilitation guide explains the general approach. This page covers what we look at in flats around NIBM, Salunke Vihar, Mohammadwadi and Lullanagar, and how the family becomes part of the team.
Rebuilding daily tasks in a flat
Rehabilitation works well when it practises what the person has to do. In a flat, those tasks are fairly predictable, and the physiotherapist works through them one at a time:
- Rolling and sitting up in bed, including how to use the weaker arm safely.
- Standing from bed, chair and toilet, which are different heights and need different techniques.
- The route to the bathroom, checking door width, floor surface and whether a stool in the shower is needed.
- Walking indoors, with or without a stick, walker or helping hand, and turning without losing balance.
- Using the lift, including entering and leaving it when the doors close quickly, and managing a wheelchair or walker inside.
The first visit also covers the less visible side of recovery: a weak shoulder that needs support, swallowing or speech concerns that should be passed to the doctor, and the risk of falls in a smooth-floored home.
Showing the family what to do
In most homes, a spouse, a son or daughter, or a paid carer is doing the daily lifting and walking. They are the people who need training. The physiotherapist shows how to stand beside the weaker side, how much help to give, and when to step back so the patient does more. We would rather the family learned a few techniques well than carried out many badly. If a relative lives abroad and wants updates, tell us whom to send them to.
Following a stroke, some patients also have a frozen shoulder or painful leg, and the same visit can handle that. Where a patient has had hip or knee surgery as well, see post-surgery rehabilitation on NIBM Road, and for older patients who are weak generally, elderly physiotherapy on NIBM Road.
Getting to follow-up appointments
A local report from April 2025 described heavy traffic on NIBM Road, and the Katraj–Kondhwa corridor is being widened, with completion targeted for March 2027. A hospital appointment can therefore be a long outing for someone with limited stamina. The physiotherapist can practise the parts the patient finds hardest: transferring into and out of a car, walking from the gate to the lift, and sitting for the length of the trip. Pack water, medicines and the discharge file, and allow rest breaks.
Staying active between sessions
- Perform the exercises set for the day in short bouts, with rests, rather than one long session.
- Keep the affected arm supported on a pillow or table when sitting, and never pull on it to move the patient.
- Walk in the corridor of the flat only with someone alongside, and with proper footwear.
- Take any new cough, choking at meals or loss of appetite to the doctor.
Emergencies
A new stroke can occur even after one has been treated. Call an ambulance straight away for sudden facial droop, a new weakness or numbness of an arm or leg, slurred speech, loss of vision, severe headache, or a seizure. Chest pain, severe breathlessness, or a swollen painful calf also needs urgent medical help.
Getting started
Use the booking page to arrange a first assessment. Share the date of the stroke, the hospital discharge summary if you have it, the building and floor, and who helps the patient most. More about our coverage is on the NIBM Road page.