Mr Min Jiat Teng1, Dr Tessa Copp3, Dr Kristen Pickles2, Ms Isabella Khoudair1,2, Mr Ben Warnock1, Prof Christopher Maher2, Dr Joshua Zadro2, A/Prof Adrian Traeger2
1RPA Virtual Hospital, Sydney Local Health District, Camperdown, Australia, 2Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia, 3Sydney Health Literacy Lab, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia
Biography:
Min Jiat Teng is the Physiotherapist Coordinator at RPA Virtual Hospital and a PhD candidate at the Institute for Musculoskeletal Health. As a clinician researcher, his work focuses on leveraging virtual care to improve access to quality care for patients with musculoskeletal conditions. He is a recipient of a Sydney Research Scholarship and a MRFF grant scholarship to pursue his clinical trial in evaluating whether a virtual fracture clinic model is effective, acceptable and sustainable compared to an in-person fracture clinic. Min Jiat was awarded the 2023 Researcher of the Year by RPA Virtual Hospital.
Abstract:
Virtual fracture clinics could provide an accessible, acceptable, and safe alternative to in-person care for patients with simple fractures. However, there is yet to be a clinical trial evaluating the effectiveness of this model of care. The Fracture Clinic Trial (RECITAL) is a prospective two-arm, parallel group randomised controlled trial, using a non-inferiority design; with nested economic and process evaluations, embedded within existing clinical services. The intervention group attended video consults with a physiotherapist while the control group attended consults with a doctor at the in-person fracture clinic. The primary outcome is physical function at 12-weeks follow-up, measured using the Patient-Specific Functional Scale. RECITAL participants were recruited from October 2023 to March 2025. 312 participants with simple fractures were randomised 1:1 to receive their follow-up care either at the virtual (intervention) or in-person (control) fracture clinic. Survey responses were 85.8% and 90.1% at 6-week and 12-week (primary outcome) timepoints respectively. 59.6% of participants were females, and the median age was 41.5 (range 18-82; years). The top three injuries were fractures of the metatarsal (25.3%), toe (24.0%) and radial head/neck (15.4%). The final follow-up survey will be completed by June 2025. We will conduct our analysis in July 2025 and present our findings in full at the conference.