Hip fracture is a serious event in the lives of older people, with about two in ten individuals dying in the first year after their injury and many more losing their independence. Three in ten older people who break their hip are living with dementia, have memory and concentration problems, or confused thinking. Currently in Ireland, we know little about how people who have memory and concentration problems or confused thinking recover after hip fracture. In the last ten years, much work has been done to improve the care that people with hip fracture get in Irish hospitals. This includes making sure they get to surgery as quickly as possible and that they have relevant tests and treatments. The Irish Hip Fracture Database is a national programme that oversees and leads this work. This research will support hospitals to improve care after hip fracture for people living with dementia or memory and concentration problems. Our research will include finding the best test to use in hospitals to see if the person has memory and attention problems, or confused thinking. We will talk to healthcare staff about how easy or difficult they find giving these tests. We will explore whether people who have memory and concentration problems or confused thinking are getting equal standards of care in hospital after hip fracture. We will look at reasons for any differences that we find. We will explore what is being done in Ireland and in other countries to improve rehabilitation for people living with dementia or with memory and concentration problems. We will try to understand what it is about this rehabilitation that works best, who it works best for, and why it works. We will communicate this back to policy-makers, to inform future service planning for people with hip fracture in Ireland.

More details available on the HRB website:

https://www.hrb.ie/grant-approved/the-hipcog-study-evaluating-the-impac…