Improvements are on the way for the fracture clinic at Ouellette Campus at Windsor Regional Hospital.
Funded by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, it has introduced a new Fracture Prevention Co-ordinator who will help to screen patients over the age of 50 for Osteoporosis and follow-up with the patient.
Osteoporosis is a disease that deteriorates the bone tissue and puts people at greater risk of breaking a bone.
The key with the new position and follow-up is to help screen patients for the disease and ensure treatment in hopes of preventing future fractures.
Fracture Prevention Co-ordinator Sam Ladeia says with the proper diagnoses and treatment, there will be fewer fractures.
"Doctors will diagnose the patients and then see if there's any need for treatment and if there is, then treatment can help the patient prevent them from having other breaks like a hip fracture which is very debilitating for patients," she says.
Windsor Regional Hospital Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Tom Trajkovski says the follow-up for people diagnosed with Osteoporosis is key.
"There is a significant proportion of patients, into the thousands, who were being lost including all of our wrist fractures, spine fractures, rib fractures and ankle fractures which were never screened but now every single one of those patients will be screened and assessed by the program."
Fracture clinic at Windsor Regional Hospital's Ouellette Campus. May 2017 (Photo by AM800's Teresinha Medeiros)
On average, the clinic sees about 17,000 patients a year with broken bones.
Fractures due to osteoporosis are more common than heart attacks, strokes and breast cancer combined.
At least 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men will suffer from an osteoporotic fracture during the lifetime.