Aims and objectives. To investigate healthcare staff's views and experiences of
caring for older hospitalized adults [aged 60+] with osteoporosis focusing on moving
and handling. Specific objectives were to explore the composition of manual handling
risk assessments and interventions in osteoporosis.
Background. Osteoporosis is a skeletal disease that reduces bone density and causes
increased fracture risk. Incidence rises with age and osteoporotic fractures cause
increased morbidity and mortality. It is major global health problem. In the UK older
hospitalized adults are normally screened for falls risk but not necessarily for
osteoporosis. As presentation of osteoporosis is normally silent until fractures are
evident it is frequently undiagnosed. Healthcare staff's knowledge of osteoporosis is
often sub optimal and specific manual handing implications under-researched.
