Own the Bone Addresses a Growing Health Crisis

Own the Bone® is Addressing a Growing Health Crisis

Zephyrhills, Florida…May 22, 2019… Since AdventHealth Zephyrhills became one of a handful of Florida hospitals to introduce the American Orthopaedic Association’s Own the Bone^® in Spring 2018, 106 of its hip and pelvic fracture patients who meet the criteria of being age 50 or older have voluntarily enrolled in the quality improvement program. A fragility fracture means that someone has fallen from a height less than what they measure when standing up.

“The program’s primary goals are to identify, evaluate, and treat patients in the 50 and over age group who are at risk for osteoporosis and to decrease their chances of having another fracture,” according to Seth Cooper, MD, Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon and the hospital’s Own the Bone® Physician Champion. AdventHealth Zephyrhills treats more than 120 hip and pelvic fragility fracture patients annually. More people in the United States will suffer a fragility fracture in 2019 than will be diagnosed with a heart attack, stroke, or breast cancer combined, according to the American Bone Health Prevalence Report.

“When a fragility fracture patient enrolls in Own the Bone® at AdventHealth Zephyrhills, a letter about their bone health is sent to the individual and to their primary care physician,” Cooper explained. “We want the doctors to take an active role in educating these patients about bone health, and we also want the individuals to take positive steps to improve their condition. These steps could include making nutritional changes, exercising, quitting smoking and drinking alcohol, or perhaps taking certain medications prescribed by their physician. We’ve seen an increase in bone density scans since we started Own The Bone® and this is great,” Cooper added.

“Own the Bone® has given AdventHealth Zephyrhills the opportunity to make sure that its enrolled patients and their primary care physicians are well informed about what needs to be done to decrease the risk for future fractures,” said Lisha McDonough, RN, AdventHealth Zephyrhills Orthopedic Clinical Coordinator. “This is very important for a couple of reasons. First, these patients are twice as likely to have another fracture in their lifetime as someone in their age group who has never had one. But by taking proactive measures to decrease the risk, things can change for the better. Also, as the baby boomer generation continues to grow, we’ll see fractures increase, too. So, we’re trying hard to prevent fragility fractures,” McDonough added.

May is National Osteoporosis and Awareness Prevention Month. AdventHealth Zephyrhills was the third hospital in Florida to become offer the Own The Bone® program. Today, there are eight hospitals statewide participating. AdventHealth Zephyrhills is also the first hospital in the State of Florida to be awarded Advanced Certification for Total Hip and Total Knee Replacement by the Joint Commission. And. the hospital was named in 2019 as one of America’s Best Hospitals for Orthopedics by the Women’s Choice Award. This is the third consecutive year that the hospital has attained this award. Finally, AdventHealth Zephyrhills is a 2019 Five-Star Recipient for Hip Fracture Treatment from Healthgrades.

For more information on AdventHealth Zephyrhills orthopedic program, visit AdventHealthZephyrhills.com

About AdventHealth Zephyrhills

AdventHealth Zephyrhills is a member of the faith-based AdventHealth System, providing a connected system of care in nearly a dozen states with close to 50 hospitals and hundreds of care sites. Since 1985, the hospital has provided award-winning care with a mission to extend the healing ministry of Christ. The hospital offers a wide variety of services to include heart care, orthopedics, women’s care, surgical care, a 24/7 emergency room and more. With a focus on whole-person care, skilled and compassionate caregivers provide individualized care for body, mind and spirit. To learn more about the hospital’s services, visit AdventHealthZephyrhills.com