DO-HEALTH partners build clinical network — Geriatric Traumatology

On January 13/14 – 2014, the DO-HEALTH team from the University Hospital of Zurich travelled to the DO-HEALTH team at the University Hospital of Innsbruck. The goal of the site visit was to experience the interdisciplinary pioneer work of Prof. Michael Blauth  (DO-HEALTH partner) and his team including Traumatologists, Geriatricians, Anesthesiologists and Nurses for a complete  care concept for senior trauma patients.

From left to right —  the picture is taken on the helipad of the Innsbruck University Hospital
which is on the roof of the main surgical building —  January 14th 2014:

• Dr. Martin Brüesch (Leading Consultant, Director Emergency Medicine Team, Dept. of Anaesthesiology,  University Hospital Zurich)
• Denise Schmid (AO Trauma Clinical Investigation and Documentation, Davos Switzerland)
• Prof. Guido Wanner (Leading Consultant, Trauma Team, University Hospital Zurich)
• Dr. Markus Gosch (Consultant Geriatrics, Trauma Team, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Prof. Hans-Peter Simmen (Director, Trauma Team, University Hospital Zurich)
• Prof. Thomas Luger (Consultant Anesthesiology, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Corinne Steinbrüchel (Advanced Practice Nurse Geriatric Care, Geriatric Team, University Hospital Zurich)
• PD Dr. Christian Kammerlander (Lecturer, Trauma Team, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Prof. Michael Blauth (Director, Trauma Team, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Dr. Dimi Iliakis (Consultant Geriatrics, Geriatric Team, University Hospital Zurich)
• Prof. Heike A. Bischoff-Ferrari (Director, Geriatric Team, University Hospital Zurich)
• PD Dr. Georg Bosshard (Leading Consultant, Geriatric Team, University Hospital Zurich)
• Dr. Yvonne Hoffmann-Weltin (Geriatric Consultant, Trauma Team, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Ramona Eisbach (Dipl. BW, Clinic Coordinator, Trauma Team, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Dr. Alexandra Dal Pont (Assistant physician, Trauma Team, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Monika Fröhlich (Study Nurse, Trauma Team, Innsbruck University Hospital)
• Otto Meyer, MD (Consultant Geriatrics, Geriatric Team, University Hospital Zurich)

Next to seeing all steps the interdisciplinary team at the Innsbruck University Hospital takes together in the trauma care of seniors, the site-visit fostered many discussions on how to start a similar concept at the University Hospital of Zurich – taking advantage of the Innsbruck experience and the DO-HEALTH partnership.  In DO-HEALTH and related to fracture care, Prof. Bischoff-Ferrari (PI and coordinator of DO-HEALTH)  and the DO-HEALTH Traumatology partners of Innsbruck (Prof. Michael Blauth), Zurich (Prof. Hans-Peter Simmen) and Basel (Prof. Norbert Suhm) collaborate in the DO-HEALTH fracture healing study – a key ancillary study of DO-HEALTH funded by AO Trauma.

As a final part of the site visit at the Innsbruck University Hospital, Prof. Bischoff-Ferrari updated the 50 trauma surgeons at the Department of Prof. Blauth on the newest vitamin D guidelines on fall and fracture prevention, and gave a report on the overall progress of DO-HEALTH.