Rehabilitation guidance for hip fracture patients during the COVID-19 pandemic using chat software: A new model.

Gao, Shuai-Shuai; Wang, Yan-Jun; Zhang, Guo-Xun; Zhang, Wen-Ting

BACKGROUND Hip fractures are serious fractures for the elderly. The rehabilitation of patients with hip fractures has been greatly affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. OBJECTIVE We have piloted a new model for tracking patients and providing rehabilitation guidance that uses WeChat. The purpose of this study is to explore the role of chat software in rehabilitation guidance for hip fracture patients during COVID-19. METHODS Patients treated for hip fractures from February 1 to April 30, 2020 were randomly divided into a control group and an observation group. The control group was given conventional discharge guidance, while the observation group also followed up the patients using WeChat to guide the exercise. Satisfaction, the Harris Hip Score, complications and the mortality of the two groups after discharge were compared. RESULTS The incidence of complications and mortality in the observation group were significantly lower than in the control group: p= 0.022 and p= 0.048, respectively. The Harris Hip Score and satisfaction were significantly better than the control group's: p= 0.000 and p= 0.007, respectively. CONCLUSION During the COVID-19 pandemic, it is very helpful to use WeChat software or other social software with similar functions (such as WhatsApp and Facebook) to guide the rehabilitation of hip fractures.