Impact of an Orthopedic Nurse Specialist-Led Therapeutic Communication Model on Medication Adherence in Patients with Fragility Fractures: Emphasizing the Role of Nurse-Led Interventions

<i>Objective </i>To explore the effect of a specialized nurse-led therapeutic communication model on medication adherence of patients with fragility fractures after discharge from the hospital. <i>Methods:</i> In this study, 114 fragility fracture patients admitted to the orthopedic ward of a tertiary hospital in Guangdong Province from December 2022 to July 2023 were selected as the study subjects. The control group received routine inpatient health education. For the intervention group, specialized nurses implemented a structured therapeutic communication model during hospitalization. This included: 1. Establishing trust with patients through relational communication. 2. Conducting a comprehensive health assessment using evaluative communication. 3. Providing personalized health education based on the assessment results (therapeutic communication). 4. Feeding back the assessment results to physicians to assist in formulating personalized treatment plans. Additionally, specialized nurses conducted telephone follow-ups at 1 and 3 months post-discharge. Each follow-up involved: Re-establishing trust with patients (relational communication), assessing bone health maintenance and medication adherence (evaluative communication). Providing tailored health guidance to address identified issues (therapeutic communication). <i>Results: </i>The intervention group, which received the specialized nurse-led therapeutic communication model, showed significantly greater improvement in medication adherence at 1 and 3 months post-discharge compared to the control group. Medication adherence improved progressively over time in the intervention group. <i>Conclusion: </i>The specialized nurse-led therapeutic communication model significantly enhances medication adherence in fragility fracture patients post-discharge, outperforming traditional health education and communication approaches.