Hip fracture is a serious event for older people. In Ireland, people with hip fracture generally receive good care in hospitals. The Irish Hip Fracture Database (IHFD) oversees and rewards the quality of this care. For many people, hip fracture recovery continues for at least four months after injury. Some people may receive formal follow-up during this time but there are differences across the country. The IHFD is now starting to track this follow-up and recovery with a goal to reduce these differences. The HipFORGE research project developed education to support health professionals to follow up their patients after hip fracture, and to record recovery information in the IHFD. To design this session, HipFORGE gathered opinions from patients with hip fracture, their families, health professionals and researchers in Ireland and the UK. Two years after completing this education, health professionals doing this work have experienced challenges. Firstly, they need an easy way to help new staff learn about the activity. Secondly, patients and their families need help to understand what to expect during recovery. The HipFORESST project aims to empower, support and sustain the healthcare teams who follow up patients with hip fracture. It will do this by producing two tools. The first is a simplified education course that staff can access at work. The second is a short video that will explain hip fracture recovery in a simple way for people who experience this injury in Ireland. The video will also be used to raise awareness among the general public in Ireland about how hip fracture can affect the lives of older people. HipFORESST will ensure that the IHFD and can continue to work towards improving outcomes that matter to older people including recovering function and quality of life, and making care more equal across Ireland.
