For occupational therapists, orthoptists, speech and language therapists & rehabilitation specialists

Information for clinicians

Evidence basis, how to recommend, and clinical feedback channels for Stroke Sight and ReWrite — rehabilitation support tools designed to complement your work.

Clinical grounding

Evidence basis

Both tools are grounded in published rehabilitation research. Neither claims to be a clinically validated tool — they are wellness support tools designed to complement professional care.

Visual field trainer

Stroke Sight

Stroke Sight's hemianopia exercises are based on the compensatory saccadic scanning approach described in NICE NG236 (Stroke rehabilitation in adults, October 2023) and four decades of research:

  • Pambakian et al. (2004) — saccadic training, JNNP
  • Zihl et al. (2021) — 5-year follow-up on compensatory scanning training
  • Rowe et al. (2025) — SEARCH trial: both groups improved on structured scanning practice with clinical support

The neglect exercises use smooth pursuit eye movement training — an approach described in German Neurological Society guidance and in the Klinke et al. (2015) systematic review. Spatial auditory cues draw on the multisensory stimulation research of Bolognini and Tinelli.

Scotoma exercises provide awareness training around the blind spot area.

Clinical guideline context NICE NG236 (Stroke rehabilitation in adults, October 2023) describes eye movement therapy for stroke-related visual field loss. Stroke Sight's exercises are based on the compensatory scanning approach described in that literature; the app itself has not been clinically evaluated and is not endorsed by NICE.
Handwriting rehab

ReWrite

ReWrite provides structured tracing practice using principles from the graphomotor rehabilitation literature. Repetitive, task-specific practice is the strongest evidence base in stroke motor rehabilitation:

  • Langhorne, Bernhardt & Kwakkel (2011) — "Stroke rehabilitation," The Lancet, 377(9778). Establishes repetitive task-specific training as the primary evidence base for stroke motor recovery
  • Veerbeek et al. (2014) — systematic review supporting repetitive practice for upper limb motor recovery, PLoS ONE
  • Yancosek & Howell (2009) — fine motor assessment and rehabilitation, Journal of Hand Therapy

Session length is designed around typical post-stroke fatigue windows. Content is language-specific — not translated — supporting rehabilitation in the patient's first language.

First language matters. ReWrite is the first dedicated adult handwriting rehabilitation app — for stroke, Parkinson's and brain injury — available in Welsh, Irish and Canadian French, alongside 17 other languages with real language-specific content.
National Aphasia Association. ReWrite is listed as a resource by the US National Aphasia Association. aphasia.org
For speech and language therapists

Writing practice as a language modality

ReWrite's Word Builder offers word-finding and spelling-by-hand practice: a word stem is completed by choosing the right ending, traced, then written from memory. For people with aphasia whose goals include written language, that practice can sit alongside your sessions — keeping writing active as an expressive modality between appointments, in the person's own language rather than a translation.

ReWrite supports independent practice. It does not assess or treat aphasia, and it is not a substitute for speech and language therapy — you set the goals; it helps with the repetitions.

Our guide: aphasia and writing after stroke →
How to recommend

Demo available for patients to try

Both apps have online demos. Patients can try the core exercises before any purchase decision — no account required.

Stroke Sight
  • Online demo covering all 9 exercises
  • Left and right side support
  • No account required
Try Stroke Sight demo
ReWrite
  • Online demo with letter and word tracing
  • All 20 languages available
  • No account required
Try ReWrite demo

Printable one-page patient handout →  ·  Patient guides →  ·  Signposting pack for organisations →

£29.99
Full version — one-time purchase, no subscription. Includes 10 difficulty levels and detailed progress exports.
Volume purchasing

Buying for a clinic, ward or team?

Both apps are paid App Store apps, so licences can be bought in volume through Apple Business Manager (Apps and Books) and deployed to managed iPhones and iPads with your MDM — licences stay with the organisation and can be reassigned as devices change hands. Managed Google Play does not currently support volume purchase of paid apps, so for a managed Android roll-out please get in touch and we will arrange licensing directly. Invoiced purchasing and a dedicated Clinic tier are in development.

Email about a clinic purchase
Other resources

Independent free tools you may also want to mention

Eye-Search and Read-Right are free, university-developed web tools: Eye-Search offers visual-search practice for people with visual field loss, and Read-Right offers reading practice for hemianopic alexia. Both were developed entirely independently of Ansteyapps — we are not affiliated with them, and they have no connection to our apps. We mention them because patients are best served by knowing every free resource that exists.

eyesearch.ucl.ac.uk  ·  readright.ucl.ac.uk

Stroke Sight is a separate option: structured scanning practice as an app, working offline on a phone or tablet, with adjustable difficulty and progress reports, for a one-time purchase.

Get in touch

Evidence summary and clinical feedback

These tools are built to complement clinical work and improve with clinical input. Feedback from clinicians is taken seriously and directly informs development.

Evidence summary document

A printable one-page evidence summary is available for circulation in clinical teams. It covers both apps, their evidence basis, and how to recommend them to patients.

Clinical feedback

These tools are built to complement your work and improve with your input. If something isn't working as it should for your patients, or you have suggestions for new exercises or features, please get in touch.

Wellness support tools — not medical devices. Stroke Sight and ReWrite are wellness support tools designed to complement professional rehabilitation. They do not diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any medical condition, and are not regulated as medical devices. Always follow your clinical judgement in recommending them, and patients should always follow the guidance of their clinical team.

Buying for a service or a team

If you are looking at ReWrite or Stroke Sight for a ward, a clinic or a charity rather than for one person, there is a separate page covering volume purchasing through Apple Business Manager, redemption codes for Android and Fire fleets, invoicing, free evaluation codes for your team, and the information-governance position — no data is collected, so there is no DPIA, no data processing agreement and no supplier security questionnaire to complete.

Buying for your service