Thesis abstract:

Traditional in-person fracture clinics are busy and unsustainable, potentially leading to poorer patient and staff experiences. The COVID-19 pandemic further pressured the clinics to provide care while ensuring safety of patients and staff. The Glasgow Royal Infirmary was the first to redesign their outpatient orthopaedic care by providing a virtual clinic model. They reported benefits to patient satisfaction, healthcare costs and low adverse events. However, despite the rapid uptake of these models of care the evidence base remains relatively thin. Most published studies lack quality as they are retrospective reviews, and they have variable outcome reporting leading to difficulty in study comparisons. My research will investigate the experiences, safety, and potential cost savings of virtual fracture care. It will include a controlled trial to better assess whether a virtual fracture clinic model can be effective, acceptable and sustainable.