Start-up of an orthogeriatric unit in a specialized general hospital

The aging of the Spanish population has led to an increasingly greater number of hip fractures attended by the Spanish Healthcare System in the last years. Those patients, due to their fragility, need special professional attention and consequently, Orthogeriatric Units (UOG) have achieved the highest benefits.The main purpose of this research project is to evaluate the principle variables associated to the elderly affected of hip fracture staying in a new Orthogeriatric Unit created at the Hospital Nuestra Señora de Candelaria in Tenerife, Spain. A descriptive study of the elderly patients diagnosed of hip fracture staying in a conventional Orthopedic Ward was conducted, focusing specifically in those who were transferred to the UOG. The main items to describe were: total time of in-hospital staying, type of hip fracture and the kind of surgery selected, physiotherapist sessions in the conventional Orthopedic Ward, in the UOG and in Home Hospitalization Unit (HADO) as well as the total number of patients that needed to continue ambulatory physiotherapist sessions. As a conclusion, early start of physiotherapist sessions inside the hospital, completed in the UOG and/or in HADO, along with counseling and professional assessment to families and patients, reduced a very high percentage of their need for ambulatory ongoing rehabilitation.