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Project Summary Project Information Key Dates
Implementation Project (Limited Competition D&I PFA)
Awarded; Contract pending

Disseminating New Evidence to Prevent Blood Clots in Patients with Bone Fractures

Project Summary

PCORI implementation projects promote the use of findings from PCORI-funded studies in real-world healthcare and other settings. These projects build toward broad use of evidence to inform healthcare decisions.

woman with plastered leg sitting on couch

This PCORI-funded dissemination project is providing new evidence to clinicians on medicines to prevent blood clots in patients recovering from a bone fracture.
Each year, more than one million Americans have surgery to fix a broken bone. During recovery, patients are at increased risk for blood clots. Blood clots form in the veins of the arms and legs. They can be fatal if they travel to the lungs.

What is the goal of this dissemination project?

Medicines are available to reduce the risk of blood clots during recovery from a fracture. Most guidelines currently recommend a medicine called enoxaparin. Enoxaparin is a low-molecular-weight heparin. It is injected under the skin. However, a PCORI-funded research study found that aspirin taken by mouth was not inferior to enoxaparin when given after a fracture. Complications like bleeding, infection, blood clots in the lungs, and death occurred at about the same rate for patients taking either medicine. Patients prescribed aspirin were also more likely to be satisfied with and continue taking their medicine.

This project is helping to make clinicians who provide care to patients with fractures aware of these research findings.

What will this project do?

The project team is working with professional societies and journals to distribute surveys to their memberships. These surveys are asking clinicians about:

  • Their awareness of the research findings
  • Their current prescribing patterns
  • How they would prefer to receive information about new findings

The project team is then creating a range of materials. They are working with representatives from professional societies to refine key messages. The team will then distribute the information in the ways most clinicians prefer. They are also identifying clinician champions to further promote the findings.

What is the expected impact of this project?

The project team expects to reach about half of US clinicians who treat fractures and prescribe medicines to prevent blood clots. These clinicians include orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants.

The evaluation will confirm that the project is working as intended to bring these new findings to clinicians. It will assess increases in knowledge about treatment options. It will also look at data from more than 800 trauma centers across the country to see if prescribing practices change.

More about this implementation project:

Stakeholders Involved in This Project

  • American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing
  • American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
  • American Association for the Surgery of Trauma
  • American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
  • American Association of Nurse Practitioners
  • American College of Surgeons
  • American Trauma Society
  • Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma
  • LBG Health Content Solutions
  • National Blood Clot Alliance
  • OrthoEvidence
  • Orthopaedic Trauma Association
  • Physician Assistants in Orthopaedic Surgery
  • PBC BioMed
  • Western Trauma Association
  • Wolters Kluwer

Dissemination Strategies

  • Refine messages for clinicians that capture and summarize evidence from the PCORI-funded study.
  • Incorporate messages into dissemination materials, such as briefs, infographics, and videos.
  • Use tailored dissemination channels, including print, email, webcasts, podcasts, social media, or online chats.
  • Partner with stakeholder organizations, including professional societies and journals, with direct reach to the intended audience.
  • Partner with organizations and vendors that have successfully developed and used materials that support dissemination to the intended audience.

Evaluation Outcomes

To document implementation:

  • Number of clinicians reached directly through dissemination channels (podcast listeners, webcast participants, evidence report downloads, social media views)
  • Awareness of the evidence (clinician survey)
  • Knowledge of blood clot medication alternatives (clinician survey)

To assess healthcare and health outcomes:

  • Changes in thromboprophylaxis medications administered to this patient population (pre-post analysis of data from American College of Surgeons-Trauma Quality Programs)

Project Information

Nathan O'Hara, PhD, MHA
Robert O'Toole, MD
University of Maryland Baltimore
$299,880 *
Disseminating New Evidence to Prevent Blood Clots in Patients with Fractures

Key Dates

36 months *
March 2023
2023

Initial PCORI-Funded Research Study

This implementation project focuses on putting findings into practice from this completed PCORI-funded research study: Comparing Two Medicines to Prevent Blood Clots after Treatment for Fractures -- The PREVENT CLOT Study

*All proposed projects, including requested budgets and project periods, are approved subject to a programmatic and budget review by PCORI staff and the negotiation of a formal award contract.

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Last updated: September 6, 2023