Xu Weiguo, Party secretary of Tianjin Hospital and director of the working group for the Tianjin Elderly Hip Fracture Center, briefs on the center's 1-year development. [Photo/Tianjin Hospital]

Tianjin Hospital has marked the first anniversary of the Tianjin Elderly Hip Fracture Center, a collaborative network linking 18 hospitals and multiple emergency and blood centers to deliver faster, more efficient treatment for elderly patients.

With more than 10,000 elderly hip fracture cases each year in Tianjin and a mortality rate exceeding 30 percent due to complications, the center aims to ensure surgery within the "golden" 48 hours.

Over the past year, Tianjin Hospital has treated more than 2,800 emergency cases, with 980 patients receiving surgery within 48 hours — a 147 percent year-on-year increase in efficiency.

The model integrates multidisciplinary collaboration across departments, including emergency, anesthesiology, geriatrics, imaging, and rehabilitation, following the principles of enhanced recovery and full-cycle care. It has significantly reduced postoperative complications and improved survival and recovery rates among elderly patients.

Xu Weiguo, Party secretary of Tianjin Hospital and director of the working group for the Tianjin Elderly Hip Fracture Center, said the establishment of the center was a key step in shifting from treatment-centered to health-centered medical care.

"By building a coordinated, patient-centered system and strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration, we aim to make Tianjin a national leader and an international model in elderly hip fracture treatment," Xu said.

The "one core, multi-hospital" model will continue to expand, with plans to achieve full coverage across all municipal trauma centers by the end of 2025.