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Geriatric Fracture Program
The St. Francis Geriatric Fracture program is dedicated exclusively to the care of older patients with hip fractures. It is designed to help patients achieve the best possible outcomes and curb the negative effects of bone fractures in geriatric fractures. Our Geriatric Fracture program is the one of the first programs of its kind in the country, and the first in SC. To learn more, please call 864-303-4928.
Experienced Team
Each patient in the Geriatric Fracture program is managed by an interdisciplinary
team, including our Medical Director, and ranging from orthopedic surgeons and anesthesiologists to specialized nurses,
social workers
and physical and occupational therapists.
All of these experienced professionals work together to follow a specific plan
for surgery and rehabilitation that
best manages the care of fracture patients.
St. Francis Inpatient Rehabilitation provides care for recovering fracture patients: a specialized team cares for elderly patients with rehabilitative needs perform physical and occupational therapy on a daily basis.
St. Francis Physical Therapists are trained in the most effective and specialized methods to getting fracture patients back to their lives. St. Francis Outpatient Rehabilitation is available on an outpatient basis to patients who have returned home, but need to continue building their strength.
Available to patients who are ready to return home but need additional nursing care, St. Francis HomeCare offers the benefits of home with a comprehensive range of services delivered in a warm, caring, and compassionate manner by specially trained and highly skilled professionals.
Our Bone Health Program educates patients about osteoporosis and how to reduce the risk of falls, while also offering a bone-building exercise program.
St. Francis Inpatient Rehabilitation provides care for recovering fracture patients: a specialized team cares for elderly patients with rehabilitative needs perform physical and occupational therapy on a daily basis.
St. Francis Physical Therapists are trained in the most effective and specialized methods to getting fracture patients back to their lives. St. Francis Outpatient Rehabilitation is available on an outpatient basis to patients who have returned home, but need to continue building their strength.
Available to patients who are ready to return home but need additional nursing care, St. Francis HomeCare offers the benefits of home with a comprehensive range of services delivered in a warm, caring, and compassionate manner by specially trained and highly skilled professionals.
Our Bone Health Program educates patients about osteoporosis and how to reduce the risk of falls, while also offering a bone-building exercise program.
Pain Management and Streamlined Admission
Research shows that patients who are treated quickly after a hip
fracture have better outcomes. However, in most healthcare facilities across the
country, geriatric hip fracture patients are considered non-urgent cases and must
wait days for surgical care. At St. Francis, the Geriatric Fracture program ensures
that hip fracture
patients are seen as a higher priority. That means the moment they enter the Emergency
Room at ST. FRANCIS downtown and a fracture is detected, they are put on a fast track to surgery.
Fractured bones can cause a tremendous amount of pain, and early surgical treatment, in combination with medication, has been found to relieve the pain from the fracture more effectively. Geriatric fracture patients at St. Francis receive surgical care much more quickly than than the national average - less than 24 hours as compared to two to three days.
When patients must wait for days to have surgery, pain is often managed with narcotics and sometimes sleeping aids, which can cause delirium in patients. This delirium, in turn, can cause a delay in starting physical therapy, leaving patients with a longer and more difficult recovery.
Because patients in the Geriatric Fracture program are in surgery within hours instead of days, there is rarely a need to use narcotics to manage pain. This means faster and more aggressive physical therapy following surgery, which can lead to a faster recovery. Often, our patients are discharged from the hospital using only over-the-counter medicine to manage pain.
Fractured bones can cause a tremendous amount of pain, and early surgical treatment, in combination with medication, has been found to relieve the pain from the fracture more effectively. Geriatric fracture patients at St. Francis receive surgical care much more quickly than than the national average - less than 24 hours as compared to two to three days.
When patients must wait for days to have surgery, pain is often managed with narcotics and sometimes sleeping aids, which can cause delirium in patients. This delirium, in turn, can cause a delay in starting physical therapy, leaving patients with a longer and more difficult recovery.
Because patients in the Geriatric Fracture program are in surgery within hours instead of days, there is rarely a need to use narcotics to manage pain. This means faster and more aggressive physical therapy following surgery, which can lead to a faster recovery. Often, our patients are discharged from the hospital using only over-the-counter medicine to manage pain.
Proven Outcomes
The Geriatric Fracture program's unique treatment plan has led to many benefits
for patients. The statistics below compare outcomes at St. Francis prior to the
inception of the Geriatric Fracture program to our most recent outcomes in 2008:
- Average length of stay in the hospital has been reduced from 7.3 days to 3.8 days
- Average length of time between ER and surgery has been reduced from 69 to 17 hours
- Infection rate has decreased from 2.62% to 0%
- Delirium rate is less than 1%, a figure significantly less than the national average of 80%
- 81% of patients return to independent living, as compared to a national average of 55%
- Mortality rate for one year post-op is 21%, as compared to a national average of 25-30%
