Skip to main content

Evidence to Improve Care

Hip Fracture

Care for People With Fragility Fractures

Click below to see a list of brief quality statements and scroll down for more information.


Quality standards are sets of concise statements designed to help health care professionals easily and quickly know what care to provide, based on the best evidence.

See below for the quality statements and click for more detail.


Quality Statement 1: Emergency Department Management
Patients with suspected hip fracture are diagnosed within 1 hour of arriving at hospital. Preparation for surgery is initiated, and patients are admitted and transferred to a bed in an inpatient ward within 8 hours of arriving at hospital.


Quality Statement 2: Surgery Within 48 Hours
Patients with hip fracture receive surgery as soon as possible, within 48 hours of their first arrival at any hospital (including any time spent in anonsurgical hospital).


Quality Statement 3: Multimodal Analgesia
Patients with suspected hip fracture have their pain assessed within 30 minutes of arriving at hospital and managed using a multimodal approach, including consideration of non-opioid systemic analgesics and peripheral nerve blocks.


Quality Statement 4: Surgery for Stable Intertrochanteric Fractures
Patients diagnosed with a stable intertrochanteric fracture are treated surgically with sliding hip screws.


Quality Statement 5: Surgery for Subtrochanteric or Unstable Intertrochanteric Fractures
Patients diagnosed with a subtrochanteric fracture or unstable intertrochanteric fracture are treated surgically with intramedullary nails.


Quality Statement 6: Surgery for Displaced Intracapsular Fractures
Patients diagnosed with a displaced intracapsular hip fracture are treated surgically with arthroplasty.


Quality Statement 7: Postoperative Blood Transfusions
Patients with hip fracture do not receive blood transfusions if they are asymptomatic and have a postoperative hemoglobin level equal to or higher than 80 g/L.


Quality Statement 8: Weight-Bearing as Tolerated
Patients with hip fracture are mobilized to weight-bearing as tolerated within 24 hours following surgery.


Quality Statement 9: Daily Mobilization
After surgery, patients with hip fracture are mobilized on a daily basis to increase their functional tolerance.


Quality Statement 10: Screening for and Managing Delirium
Patients with hip fracture are screened for delirium using a validated tool as part of their initial assessment and then at least once every 12 hours while in hospital, after transitions between settings, and after any change in medical status. Patients receive interventions to prevent delirium and to promote recovery if delirium is present.


Quality Statement 11: Postoperative Management
Patients with hip fracture receive postoperative care from an interdisciplinary team in accordance with principles of geriatric care.


Quality Statement 12: Patient, Family, and Caregiver Information
Patients with hip fracture and/or their family and caregivers are given information on patient care that is tailored to meet the patient’s needs and delivered at appropriate times in the care continuum.


Quality Statement 13: Rehabilitation
Patients with hip fracture participate in an interdisciplinary rehabilitation program (in an inpatient setting, a community setting, or a combination of both) with the goal of returning to their pre-fracture functional status.


Quality Statement 14: Osteoporosis Management
While in hospital, patients with hip fracture undergo an osteoporosis assessment from a clinician with osteoporosis expertise and, when appropriate, are offered pharmacologic therapy for osteoporosis.


Quality Statement 15: Follow-Up Care
Patients with hip fracture are discharged from inpatient care with a scheduled follow-up appointment with a primary care provider within 2 weeks of returning home and a scheduled follow-up appointment with the orthopaedic service within 12 weeks of their surgery.

9

Daily Mobilization

After surgery, patients with hip fracture are mobilized on a daily basis to increase their functional tolerance.


The goal of postoperative mobilization is to help patients return to their pre-fracture level of functioning as soon as possible. The benefits of early mobilization include decreased length of hospital stay and fewer complications associated with prolonged time spent in bed. Patients should receive assistance with mobilization at least once each day—more often whenever possible—from members of the health care staff, including nurses. Where safe and appropriate, family members or caregivers should also be encouraged to assist with daily mobilization.

For Patients

You should receive help to stand and walk the day after your surgery and every day after that while you’re in the hospital.


For Clinicians

Following surgery, ensure patients with hip fracture are mobilized at least once daily by a member of the health care staff. Where possible, family members or caregivers should be encouraged to assist with mobilization, once your health care team deems it safe and appropriate.


For Health Services

Ensure that the appropriate protocols and human resources are in place to help patients with hip fracture mobilize daily after surgery to progressively increase their functional tolerance.

Process Indicator

Percentage of hip fracture patients who are mobilized at least once daily postoperatively while in hospital

  • Denominator: total number of adults admitted to hospital with a primary diagnosis of fragility hip fracture who undergo surgery for hip fracture

  • Numerator: number of people in the denominator who are mobilized daily postoperatively while in hospital

  • Data source: local data collection

Mobilization

Mobilization involves progression through a continuum of functional activities with the goal of returning the patient to their pre-fracture level of mobility:

  • Sit at bedside

  • Transfer to chair with assistance

  • Transfer to chair independently

  • Walk with assistance

Let’s make our health system healthier

Join Our Patient, Family and Public Advisors Program

Patients, families and the public are central to improving health quality.


Man smiling

Sign up for our newsletter

Are you passionate about quality health care for all Ontarians? Stay in-the-know about our newest programs, reports and news.

Health Quality Connect - Health Quality Ontario's newsletter - on an iPad and a cell phone