Treating patients with fragility fractures of the hip and lumbar spine is perhaps the most-serious task that call-taking orthopaedic surgeons perform. Doing a good job on the operation, when surgery is indicated, can save a patient’s mobility; doing a good job with the consult can save a patient’s life. I’m drawing an important distinction here, because the consult doesn’t end with the last suture, staple, or dab of glue. Rather, that’s when the really important part begins. Good care for these patients depends on systems-based approaches [8, 23, 24]. If robust, multidisciplinary systems don’t exist for the care of patients with fragility fractures where you practice, take the opportunity to try to help create them.
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