The Effectiveness of a Geriatric Hip Fracture Clinical Pathway in Reducing Hospital and Rehabilitation Length of Stay and Improving Short-Term Mortality Rates

摘要

A geriatric hip fracture clinical pathway, led by an orthopedic surgeon, was developed in 2007. This clinical pathway team is multidisciplinary and consists of surgeons, physicians, anesthetists, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, medical social workers, dieticians as well as voluntary support groups. From early 2007 onward, all patients older than 65 years with acute isolated hip fractures were included. During the whole inpatient treatment, all relevant data were captured prospectively. The data in 2006, before the implementation of the clinical pathway, were collected retrospectively through computer record system. A study of the length of stay in acute and rehabilitation hospital and also the short-term mortality rate was carried out to compare the difference before and after the implementation of the pathway. From 2007 onward, more than 1300 hip fractures were treated. After the implementation of the pathway, the preoperative length of stay was markedly shortened by 4 days, from an average of 6.1 days in 2006 to 1.5 days in 2011 (P Geriatric hip fracture clinical pathway is an excellent approach to the geriatric hip fracture service. The most significant improvement is the dramatic shortening of the length of hospital stay. Our success in the past 5 years has proven its value and sustainability.