Dr Piers Truter awarded Raine Clinical Research fellowship to investigate a new model of fracture care

Congratulations to Dr Piers Truter, Fiona Stanley and Rockingham General Hospital Advanced Scope Physiotherapist, who is just one of four 2025 Clinician Research Fellowship recipients to receive a share in $1.4 million.

Jointly funded by Future Health Research and Innovation (FHRI) Fund and Raine Medical Research Foundation, the fellowship supports medical, nursing, and allied health professionals undertaking innovative research projects that aim to improve diagnosis, treatment, system efficiency and long-term health outcomes for Western Australians.

Awarded over $300,000, the fellowship will support Piers’ research Enhancing Simple Fracture Care: Balancing Consumer Outcomes and System Efficiency.

Building on the success of Fiona Stanley Hospital's virtual fracture clinic, the study will evaluate the introduction of a customised direct discharge model at Rockingham General Hospital in 2026.

Piers explained the new model of care see's orthopaedic and emergency departments identifying 'simple self-limiting fractures', empowering patients through a mobile app providing guidance and rapid access to help if needed, reducing unnecessary clinic visits while maintaining excellent recovery outcomes.

"The process involves connecting people to the app in ED and not referring them to orthopaedics for outpatient review," Piers explained.

"There is an x-ray review safety net process and the ability for people to re-connect with the hospital if they have concerns. This can be done as these injuries heal well without plaster, immobility or further treatment."

Piers and his research team will be working closely with a Dutch team who have successfully developed and implemented this process. It is hoped that we will see the same benefits in Australia as seen in the Netherlands. These benefits include:

• reducing the number of outpatients referrals
• reducing the cost of care for hospitals
• producing non-inferior patient outcomes compared to visiting the hospital in-person
• a reduced burden of care seeking for patients
• patients returning to work and recreation sooner.

The fellowship will provide three years of funding to support Piers' innovative research program to improve fracture care for patients across South Metropolitan Health Service.

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