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Invitation to Review Draft SOS Fracture Alliance Clinical Standards for Secondary Fracture Prevention

SOSFA
Jan 30
2 min read

The SOS Fracture Alliance (SOSFA) represents 41 organisations across Australia, committed to the mission of "making the first break the last" by improving the care of patients who sustain osteoporotic fractures. To advance this goal, we have developed the attached draft Clinical Standards for Australian Secondary Fracture Prevention Services.

Internationally, clinical or quality standards for secondary fracture prevention have been developed in countries including Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. The International Osteoporosis Foundation’s (IOF) Best Practice Framework and Key Performance Indicator (KPI) set, created in collaboration with the Fragility Fracture Network (FFN) and Bone Health and Osteoporosis Foundation (BHOF, USA), provide globally endorsed benchmarks.

The SOSFA Clinical Standards aim to provide a systematic approach to secondary fracture prevention, enabling health professionals to benchmark and improve service quality and cost-effectiveness. This approach aims to mirror the success of the Australian and New Zealand Hip Fracture Care Clinical Care Standards, which have significantly enhanced care and outcomes for older Australians with hip fractures over the past decade.

Participation in the Australian and New Zealand Fragility Fracture Registry (ANZFFR) will further support Secondary Fracture Prevention Services in Australia by enabling benchmarking against the SOSFA Clinical Standards. This approach has proven highly effective in New Zealand, where the ANZFFR, in conjunction with the New Zealand Clinical Standards for FLS, serves as the foundation for the national Fracture Liaison Service (FLS) quality improvement programme.

Informed by New Zealand’s Clinical Standards for FLS published in 2021, the SOSFA Clinical Standards adopt the proven “5IQ” framework: Identification, Investigation, Information, Intervention, Integration, and Quality.

We the any interested parties to review the attached draft SOSFA Clinical Standards and provide feedback by 30 April 2025 to SOSFA via admin@sosfracturealliance.org.au. Community input will play a vital role in refining these standards to ensure their relevance and effectiveness.

We thank in advance contributors for their collaboration in advancing secondary fracture prevention across Australia.

With kind regards,

Professor Markus J Seibel AM

Chair, SOS Fracture Alliance