Funded by an £4million grant from the UK National Institute for Health and Care Research, the study will bring together researchers from Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences (NDORMS) at the University of Oxford and clinical academic colleagues in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
Matt Costa, Professor of Orthopaedic Trauma Surgery at NDORMS said: "Evidence from the UK and other developed healthcare economies shows that taking a multidisciplinary approach with hip fracture patients reduces mortality, improves patients' quality of life and reduces economic costs. With rapidly ageing populations in Asia, the number of patients at risk of hip fractures is increasing. Now more than ever, we need to find ways to improve outcomes andrestore quality of life, while also making savings on health system costs."
The HIPCARE package, has three main components that brings in expertise from different specialisms and relies on a streamlined approach to patient care and follow up.
- Prompt surgery - requiring co-operation between surgeons, physicians and anaesthetists.
- Immediate weight-bearing mobilisation after surgery – requiring input from surgeons, rehabilitation specialists, nurses and physiotherapists
- Prompt 'orthogeriatric' assessment to reduce the risk of future falls and fractures – requiring senior physicians co-managing patients with surgeons.