Ochsner Baton Rouge Becomes First in State to Join Own the Bone Program

Ochsner Baton Rouge has signed on as the first facility in Louisiana to participate in the American Orthopaedic Association’s Own the Bone™ Program.  The program is designed to better identify, evaluate and treat patients who suffer from an osteoporosis or low bone density-related fragility fracture (a broken bone caused by a fall from standing height or less). 

“The goal of the Own the Bone Program™ is to prevent fractures in patients who are prone to them because their bones are thin.  These patients are at much greater risk of suffering a break than others and in many cases the fracture results from a very minor impact that would not injure someone with healthy bone,” says Bruce Monaco, MD – Ochsner Baton Rouge Department Head of Orthopedic Surgery.

The Own the Bone Program™  provides the patient with a team of dedicated experts including emergency room and hospital physicians as well as orthopedists, rheumatologists and dieticians.  The team will focus on immediate fracture management as well as long-term management to stabilize and improve bone health and density.  Each patient in the program will work with the team to develop their own individualized plan for avoiding future fractures. 

Program management will include:

·         Orthopedic care

·         Nutrition consulting

·         Personalized exercise plan creation

·         Bone density monitoring

·         Medication monitoring

“Patients will benefit from having a dedicated team focusing on their personal bone health,” says Dr. Monaco.  “The information they receive will also empower them so that they can proactively reduce their risk for a break.” 

According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, half of all women and a quarter of men over the age of 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture.  Having these fractures greatly impacts the patient’s quality of life and significantly increases their risk for future fractures. 

About the AOA: The American Orthopaedic Association, founded in 1887, is the oldest national orthopaedic association in the world.  The AOA’s mission is to identify, develop, engage and recognize leadership to further the art and science of orthopaedics.  For more information, visitwww.aoassn.org. 

About Ochsner’s Baton Rouge’s services: Ochsner’s Baton Rouge services include six local health centers and Ochsner Medical Center – Baton Rouge, a full service acute care hospital located at I-12 and O’Neal Lane.  Ochsner employs more than 1,000 locally, including nearly 100 physicians. Ochsner Baton Rouge is a part of Ochsner Health System, southeast Louisiana’s largest non-profit, academic, multi-specialty, healthcare delivery system. For more information, please visitwww.ochsner.org and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.