image: At the end of 2022, the IOF Capture the Fracture® program welcomed the 800th fracture liaison service (FLS) to the network. view more
Credit: International Osteoporosis Foundation
The International Osteoporosis Foundation’s landmark Capture the Fracture® (CTF) program achieved an important new milestone when it welcomed the 800th Fracture Liaison Service (FLS) to the network in December 2022. With the addition of the FLS at Hospital Dr. Gustavo Nelson Collado Ríos, the first FLS to join from Panama, and Eastern Regional Referral Hospital, the first FLS to join from Bhutan, the CTF Global Map of Best Practice now provides recognition for post-fracture care (PFC) programs in 53 countries and all regions of the world.
IOF President Professor Cyrus Cooper, stated: “We are exceedingly proud of the IOF Capture the Fracture® program, a global platform for Fracture Liaison Service recognition, sustainability, and development. This new milestone attests to the importance of the program as it moves from strength to strength, with ever greater outreach in all regions of the world. Altogether, the Capture the Fracture® network sees more than 460,000 patients annually, thus making an important contribution to secondary fracture prevention and post-fracture outcomes in 53 countries.”
An FLS is a specific model of coordinator-based post-fracture care where a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals proactively identifies fracture patients and facilitates osteoporosis treatment and follow-up. The FLS model is a proven and effective way to improve patient outcomes and reduce the post-fracture osteoporosis treatment gap.
Despite its threat to the well-being of older adults and the enormous direct and indirect costs to healthcare systems, osteoporosis is vastly underdiagnosed and undertreated even in patients who have already broken a bone. Some 80% of these high-risk patients do not receive the care needed to protect themselves against life-threatening secondary fractures. The risk of suffering a recurring fracture is highest in the first two years – highlighting the importance of timely diagnosis and care.
IOF CEO Dr Philippe Halbout added: “An FLS has the potential to transform lives, and we urge healthcare systems to consider the benefits of implementing such programs in all hospitals that treat patients who present with fractures. We also invite all hospitals which have established a coordinator-based post-fracture care service to join our growing global network.”
Capture the Fracture® provides free recognition and sets global best practices based on the CTF Best Practice Framework (BPF), the internationally-endorsed guidance for excellence in secondary fracture prevention. Upon completion of the online BPF Questionnaire, PFC/FLS receive:
- Visibility and recognition for their PFC Coordination Program/FLS on the Capture the Fracture® Map of Best Practice;
- Peer-review of their PFC Coordination Program/FLS by the CTF Steering Committee and benchmarking for FLS against the internationally endorsed Best Practice Framework, highlighting services’ strengths and areas for improvement;
- Receipt of a certificate of achievement and use of the IOF-approved Capture the Fracture® Best Practice Recognition logo on their service’s website and materials;
- Access to a wide range of resources and tools, as well as a network of international experts who can share their expertise and also provide mentorship and support.
Applying services are evaluated against the 13 BPF standards based on their organizational characteristics and standards of care for four key fragility fracture patient groups - hip fractures, other in-patient fractures, outpatient fractures, and vertebral fractures. Following expert evaluation, the FLS receives an overall rating of gold, silver, bronze, or blue for those which are newly established or do not yet wish to be assessed. Those with a final gold, silver or bronze rating are awarded a Capture the Fracture® Best Practice Recognition Certificate of Achievement. FLS administrators can request re-assessment every 12 months through their personal online account.
New and established Fracture Liaison Services are invited to learn more and join the Capture the Fracture® program by visiting www.capturethefracture.org.
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About Capture the Fracture®
Capture the Fracture® (CTF) is a multi-stakeholder initiative led by the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF). The initiative hopes to drive changes at local and international levels, so that secondary fracture prevention becomes a reality. Its aim is to set global best practices for Fracture Liaison Services (FLS), while serving as a benchmark tool to which clinics and hospitals can adhere and aspire to, and receive international recognition. The CTF program has a diverse set of tools that provides essential resources and documentation to drive quality improvement in FLS; CTF also offers mentorship programs that support the development of FLS at the local level. The CTF network, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2022, currently includes more than 800 FLS in 53 countries worldwide.
https://www.capturethefracture.org #CaptureTheFracture
About IOF
The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) is the world's largest nongovernmental organization dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis and related musculoskeletal diseases. IOF members, including committees of scientific researchers as well as more than 300 patient, medical and research societies, work together to make fracture prevention and healthy mobility a worldwide health care priority.
https://www.osteoporosis.foundation @iofbonehealth