Introduction
The Stroke Recovery app supports Veterans in managing their recovery after a stroke. Veterans can log daily check-ins, complete weekly educational courses and track health data such as blood pressure, heart rate, and blood oxygen levels. Vital signs can be entered manually or synced from compatible devices connected to Apple Health, such as smartwatches, blood pressure monitors, or pulse oximeters. You can also view your data over time and export it in multiple formats.
The app may be useful for Veterans and caregivers — especially those in rural areas — who want tools to support stroke recovery at home.
NOTE: Information entered in the Stroke Recovery app is stored locally on your device and is not automatically shared with your VA care team.
Features
- Daily Check-in — Log your symptoms, fatigue, medications, and vitals each day to track your progress.
- Monitor Vital Signs — Enter blood pressure, blood oxygen level, and heart rate, or sync automatically from Apple Health with supported devices. You can also export or print your results to share with your VA care team.
- Complete Coursework — Work through weekly interactive lessons on stroke recovery and fatigue.
- Manage Medications — Track your prescriptions and set reminders to stay on schedule.
- Manage Appointments — Add your follow-up appointments in the app, which also syncs with your Apple Calendar.
- Browse Resources — Access educational PDFs, post-stroke exercise guidance, caregiver-focused materials, and more.
- Track Progress — Earn badges and achievements for completing daily check-ins, tracking vitals, and coursework, marking milestones in your recovery.
Training Materials
Additional Links
FAQs
What is the Stroke Recovery app?
The Stroke Recovery app allows Veterans to manage and support their post-stroke recovery with daily check-ins, educational lessons, and health tracking tools. You can complete weekly coursework, log symptoms and medications, record daily fatigue, track follow-up appointments, and monitor vital signs such as blood pressure, blood oxygen level, and heart rate. The app also provides a library of resources including educational PDFs, post-stroke exercise guidance, caregiver-focused materials, and more. As you continue using these tools, you can earn badges and achievements that highlight your progress and milestones in recovery.
Do I need to be a Veteran to use the Stroke Recovery app?
No. The Stroke Recovery app is available for download on any iOS device. While it was developed with Veterans and their caregivers in mind, its educational content, health tracking tools, and resources can help support anyone recovering from a stroke.
What are the app’s main features?
The Stroke Recovery app includes the following features:
Daily Check-in — Log your symptoms, fatigue, medications, and vital signs each day to track your progress.
Monitor Vital Signs — Enter blood pressure, blood oxygen levels, and heart rate, or sync automatically from Apple Health with supported devices. You can also export or print your results to share with your VA care team.
Complete Coursework — Work through weekly interactive lessons on stroke recovery and fatigue.
Manage Medications — Track your prescriptions and set reminders to stay on schedule.
Manage Appointments — Add your follow-up appointments in the app, which also syncs with your Apple Calendar.
Browse Resources — Access educational PDFs, post-stroke exercise guidance, caregiver-focused materials, and more.
Track Progress — Earn badges and achievements for completing daily check-ins, tracking vital signs, and coursework, marking milestones in your recovery.
Does the Stroke Recovery app connect directly to health devices?
No. The Stroke Recovery app does not connect directly to any health devices. However, if you enable permissions for Apple Health, the app can display vital signs such as blood pressure, blood oxygen level, and heart rate from compatible devices connected to Apple Health.
How can I use my health devices with the Stroke Recovery app?
The Stroke Recovery app does not connect directly to health devices. However, if your device shares data with Apple Health and you grant permission during setup, vital signs such as blood pressure, blood oxygen level, and heart rate collected by that device will automatically appear in the app.
NOTE: You must enable Apple Health permissions during initial app setup. No data is synced directly from your device or third-party health apps.
What are some examples of health devices that are compatible with Apple Health and can share data with the Stroke Recovery app?
Some examples of devices that are compatible with Apple Health include:
- Apple Watch
- Withings smart blood pressure monitors
- iHealth wireless blood pressure cuffs
- Wellue O2Ring and other pulse oximeters
- Omron Bluetooth blood pressure monitors
NOTE: Devices must first be set up to share data with Apple Health before information can appear in the Stroke Recovery app.
What happens if I did not allow Apple Health permissions during setup?
If you did not allow Apple Health permissions during setup, the Stroke Recovery app cannot display vital signs (blood pressure, blood oxygen level, or heart rate) from devices connected to Apple Health. You can still manually enter vitals, but automatic syncing will not occur until permissions are enabled.
To enable Apple Health sharing after setup:
- Open the Settings app on your iOS device.
- Scroll down and select Health.
- Tap Data Access & Devices.
- Select Stroke Recovery from the list of apps.
- Tap Turn On All at the top of the screen to allow Stroke Recovery to read your health data.
Once these permissions are enabled, new readings collected by compatible devices that share data with Apple Health will automatically appear in the Stroke Recovery app.
NOTE: The Stroke Recovery app does not connect directly to devices or other third-party apps. Only data shared with Apple Health and authorized for Stroke Recovery will display.
Can I manually enter vital signs into the Stroke Recovery app?
Yes. You can manually enter blood pressure, blood oxygen level, and heart rate readings directly into the Stroke Recovery app. Each metric displays your data in a graph and list view, with color-coded markers showing normal, abnormal, or concerning values.
How do I manually enter vital signs into the Stroke Recovery app?
You can manually enter blood pressure, blood oxygen level, and heart rate readings at any time.
- From the Daily Check-in screen, select the three lines icon in the top-left corner to open the menu.
- From the menu, select Vitals.
- Choose the vital sign you want to update: Blood Pressure, Blood Oxygen, or Heart Rate.
- On the Vitals screen, select New Entry or the purple plus icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
- Enter your measurement:
For Blood Pressure, use the keypad to enter systolic and diastolic values.
For Blood Oxygen Level and Heart Rate, use the keypad or scroll wheel to input your reading.
- Tap Save or Done to record your entry.
Your new measurement will appear in both the graph view and list view on the Vitals screen. Normal, abnormal, and concerning values are highlighted with color-coded markers to help track your recovery trends over time.
How do I delete a manually entered health measurement in the Stroke Recovery app?
You can remove any health measurement you entered manually.
- From the Daily Check-in screen, select the three lines icon in the top-left corner to open the menu.
- From the menu, select Vitals.
- Choose the vital sign you want to update: Blood Pressure, Blood Oxygen, or Heart Rate.
- In the list view below the graph, locate the measurement you want to remove.
- Tap the trash can icon to the right of that measurement.
- A confirmation message will appear:
Select the purple Cancel button if you do not want to delete it.
Select the red Delete button to permanently remove the entry.
Deleted entries will no longer appear in your list, graph, or exported data.
NOTE: Only vital signs entered manually can be deleted. Measurements synced automatically from Apple Health cannot be removed within the Stroke Recovery app.
How do I add a new medication in the Stroke Recovery app?
You can add medications to track dosage, timing, and reminders in the Stroke Recovery app.
- From the Daily Check-in screen, select the three lines icon in the top-left corner to open the menu.
- From the menu, select Medications.
- On the Medications screen, select Add New Medication or the purple plus icon on the right-hand side.
- On the New Medication screen:
Select a medication from the Select a common stroke medication list or type the name manually in the field below it.
Use the keypad to enter the dosage and select the unit from the dropdown list.
Select a Color or Image to label your medication.
Under Times, choose how you take the medication. Select At Regular Intervals to set a recurring frequency or select As Needed if the medication does not have a set schedule.
Select the purple Save button to record your medication.
Saved medications appear in your list on the Medications screen. From this screen, you can view the dosage for each prescription and mark doses as taken.
How do I edit or delete a medication in the Stroke Recovery app after I’ve saved it?
You can update or remove any medication saved in the Stroke Recovery app.
- From the Daily Check-in screen, select the three lines icon in the top-left corner to open the menu.
- From the menu, select Medications.
- On the Medications screen, select the list view icon to the right of the Medications header to open All Medications.
- Select the medication you want to update from the list:
Select the purple pencil icon to edit the name, dosage, unit, label, or timing.
Select the red X icon to delete the medication.
- A confirmation message will appear:
Select the purple Cancel button if you do not want to delete it.
Select the red Delete button to permanently remove the medication from your list.
Once updated or deleted, the changes will appear immediately in your medication list.
Does the Stroke Recovery app share my data with my VA care team?
No. The Stroke Recovery app does not automatically share your health data with your VA care team. However, you can export your vital signs as a CSV file, plain text file, or printout to bring to your appointments.
What do I do if I need additional help or information?
If you need assistance with the Stroke Recovery app, contact the Office of Connected Care Help Desk at 866-651-3180. Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For any questions about your health, please contact your VA care team.
NOTE: If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.