OBJECTIVE: To assess outcomes of using a clinical pathway for managing patients with fractured neck of femur. DESIGN: Prospective, pseudorandomised, controlled trial. SETTING: St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria (a tertiary referral, university teaching hospital), 1 October 1997 to 30 November 1998. PARTICIPANTS: 111 patients (80 women and 31 men; mean age 81 years) admitted via the emergency department with a primary diagnosis of fractured neck of femur. INTERVENTIONS: Management guided by a clinical pathway (55 patients) or established standard of care (control group, 56 patients). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Timing of referrals and discharge planning; total length of stay; and complication and readmission rates within 28 days of discharge. RESULTS: Patients managed according to the clinical pathway had a shorter total stay (6.6 versus 8.0 days; p = 0.03), even if assessment for placement by the Aged Care Assessment Service was required (9.5 versus 13.6 days; p = 0.03). There were no significant differences in complication and readmission rates between pathway and control patients (complication rates, 24% versus 36%; p = 0.40; readmission rates, 4% versus 11%; p = 0.28). CONCLUSION: Coordinated multidisciplinary care of patients with fractured neck of femur reduces length of stay without increasing complications.

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