Beard Brouillette Holdings, Inc.

Study aims to improve osteoporosis care through patient tailored education materials in a group-randomized trial of patients referred to home health care with a history of fracture and/or an osteoporosis diagnosis. Project investigators will conduct telephone surveys and examine electronic medical record data to assess fracture related morbidity and mortality, osteoporosis treatment and adherence, and use of calcium and vitamin D supplements.
We hypothesize that patients that receive the intervention materials will be more likely to initiate or maintain osteoporosis treatment.

SPECIFIC AIMS: We propose a three-year study to develop a high-intensity intervention to improve osteoporosis care and test a novel intervention in a group-randomized trial of 27 home health offices and 1,000 patients referred to home health care with a history of fracture.
Aim 1. Develop an intervention to promote osteoporosis treatment that includes: (1) training to enhance nurse-patient and nurse-physician risk communication regarding osteoporosis and fracture risk; (2) automated prompts within the home health agency's electronic medical record system to promote appropriate osteoporosis management; and (3) implementation of osteoporosis-related standardized care pathways and order sets.
Aim 2. Conduct a group-randomized trial to test the effectiveness of the intervention to promote initial use of osteoporosis medications and adherence to treatment after discharge from home health. We hypothesize that:
H1: Patients in the intervention group will have increased initial receipt of osteoporosis prescription medications and calcium/vitamin D supplements to prevent and treat osteoporosis compared to patients receiving usual care; H2: Patients in the intervention group will demonstrate increased persistence in the use of these therapies compared to those receiving usual care.
Secondary Aims (SA) will include exploratory analyses of fracture related morbidity and mortality, patient-reported quality of life, and health services utilization and costs.