Fast-tracking admission from emergency room to orthopaedic ward in hip fracture patients
Jensen, P.S.øe.; Holm, M.; Christensen, F.T.; Foss, N.B.; Kehlet, H.
Ugeskrift for Laeger 169(9): 808-812
2007
ISSN/ISBN: 1603-6824 PMID: 17355846 Document Number: 605217
The traditional admission protocol for hip fracture patients often results in long waiting hours in the A&E. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of an optimised admission protocol on the time spent in the A&E in an already established multimodal rehabilitation program. Descriptive, prospective intervention study in two groups of 150 hip fracture patients admitted before and after the implementation of an optimised admission protocol, which included nurse requested x-ray and opioid-free analgesic. The median waiting time in the control group was 251 min (83-632 min.) compared to 185 min (58-522 min, p < 0,001)) in the intervention group. The median waiting time for operation was 18-19 hours in both groups. An optimised admission protocol, including nurse requested X-ray for hip fracture patients, led to a reduction in the time spent in the A&E.