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Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP)

What we are doing

The Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP) is a national clinical audit run by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) designed to audit the care that patients with fragility fractures and inpatient falls receive in hospital and to facilitate improvement initiatives.

Elements of the programme

The FFFAP is comprised of the following three workstreams:

Alongside the advisory groups and board the programme receives guidance from:

  • The Patient and Carer Panel - a group of 10 patient and carer volunteers who support the Falls and Fragility Fractures Audit Programme (FFFAP).

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We are delighted to announce that, following an invitation to tender from HQIP, the Royal College of Physicians has been awarded the new contract to continue delivering the Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP).

The new contract will commence on 1 July 2023 and the FFFAP team is currently busy with preparations ahead of this date. We are taking the opportunity to review our organisation and governance structures to ensure these remain fit for purpose.

FFFAP’s vision for the new contract is to increase emphasis on delivery of online improvement resources and a healthcare improvement plan which can clearly measure impact. Our aims are:

  1. To improve the quality of care, services and clinical outcomes for people following a fragility fracture or an inpatient fall.
  2. To deliver dynamic and responsive support to clinical and service leaders by appropriate design, focus and dissemination of audit results.
  3. To incorporate the perspectives and experience of patients and the public.
  4. To support local and national service improvement in the quality of care and patient experience.

Thank you for all the time and commitment you have given to FFFAP as data inputters, lead clinicians and audit facilitators. We are looking forward to continuing our work with you to achieve some lasting improvements in falls and fragility fracture care.

If you have any immediate questions, please contact the FFFAP team at fffap@rcp.ac.uk

Who's involved

Organisations

The programme has been commissioned by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP) as part of the National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcomes Programme (NCAPOP) and currently covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland only. 

The audit programme is led by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), working closely with a broad range of organisations including: 

FFFAP is supported by a board, advisory groups and a patient and carer panel.  

What we have produced

Highlighting real services participating in the Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP) through images submitted by healthcare professionals.

A glossary of terms and abbreviations used throughout annual reports for the National Hip Fracture Database, National Audit of Inpatient Falls and Fracture Liaison Service Database.

A repository of resources aimed at patients and carers which have been co-produced by the Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP) patient and carer panel.

This brief report has been designed to summarise information about falls and fragility fracture care across Wales and examines how inpatient care has changed since 2020, showing what the three audits reveal about the quality of patient care, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The FallSafe and CareFall e-learning modules have been developed for nurses and junior doctors, but are relevant for all healthcare professionals interested in falls prevention.

The way in which healthcare services work with patients, carers and service users can vary. Publicly available examples of good practice for patient and public involvement and engagement are difficult to find.

This brief report has been designed to summarise information about falls and fragility fracture care across Wales and help people to understand the care provided in their local area.

The Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP) has data available for healthcare professionals and academic institutions to access for research and analysis purposes. 

The Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP) is a national clinical audit run by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP).

The Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP) is a national clinical audit designed to monitor and improve the care provided for patients with fragility fractures.

Although the NHS is no longer organised around regional health authorities, clinical networks, deaneries and training rotation are still regionally based.

Data processing statements for the Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme (FFFAP).