Fractured state of bone care

THOUSANDS of people are being put at risk of broken bones due to a postcode lottery that leaves a lack of fracture prevention services in parts of England andwales.

The Royal Osteoporosis Society said new figures revealed 4,000 breaks could be prevented over the next five years, saving the NHS £6.8million if there was improved access to fracture liaison services (FLS).

Areas including London, Merseyside, Yorkshire and parts of Wales are a blackhole with no access to services.

While everyone in Scotland and Northern Ireland has access to a FLS, only 57 per cent of the population in England is covered, and just 72 per cent in Wales. Osteoporosis is a condition that causes bones to lose strength and break more easily. In the UK, half of women and 20 per cent of men over 50 will break a bone because of osteoporosis.

People who have had their first fracture are at heightened risk of suffering painful follow-on fractures, unless they’re identified.

A fifth of women who have broken a bone, break three or more before being diagnosed.

Craig Jones, Royal Osteoporosis Society

CEO, said: “It’s a bitter irony since fracture liaison services were invented in the UK, before being exported to numerous other health systems across the world.

“The services work, they are a lifeline for avoiding severe pain and disability, and they save the NHS millions.”

An all-party parliamentary group on osteoporosis and bone health was launched by MPS and peers in March to raise awareness of the condition and the importance of bone health among parliamentarians and NHS leaders.

It has launched an inquiry into the postcode lottery for access to a quality FLS, aiming to level up services across the country.

The ROS, whose president is the Duchess of Cornwall, is looking for patients to share their stories as part of the inquiry.

Judith Cummins, Labour MP for Bradford South, is chair of the all-party parliamentary group.

She said: “Three and a half million people live with osteoporosis in the UK, but the condition is under-diagnosed, under-treated and suffers from a lack of public awareness.

“The postcode lottery around access to fracture liaison services is unfair and leads to thousands of people suffering alone and in silence.”

‘The postcode lottery is unfair’