Clinical Standards

Adhering to clinical standards for hip fracture care and secondary fracture prevention improves patient outcomes and supports evidence-based practices.

Hip fracture care

The Hip Fracture Clinical Care Standard aims to improve the assessment and management of individuals with hip fractures from the moment they present to the hospital through to discharge. This updated standard focuses on optimising outcomes by promoting evidence-based practices, minimising delays to surgery, enhancing recovery through early mobilisation, and reducing the risk of subsequent fractures.

By following these standards, healthcare providers can ensure consistent, high-quality care across various healthcare settings, enabling better patient outcomes and more informed healthcare decisions. This standard is essential for clinicians, patients, and policymakers alike and is available from here.

Secondary fracture prevention

The Clinical Standards for Fracture Liaison Services (FLS) in New Zealand offers a robust framework to ensure that patients with fragility fractures receive consistent, high-quality care.

The clinical standards are structured according to the “5IQ” approach, that defines which patients should be identified, how and when they should be investigated, what information should be provided to patients to engage them in their care, what interventions should be offered to reduce future fracture risk, how integration can be achieved across the primary and secondary care sectors, and what quality metrics should be in place

These clinical standards incorporate international best practices and key performance indicators to drive continuous quality improvement. By adhering to the 5IQ model, Fracture Liaison Services and local primary care providers can ensure they are delivering evidence-based care that optimally reduces the risk of subsequent fractures and enhances patient outcomes.

The Clinical Standards are available from here.