MOTION reducing knee replacements
MOTION is a two-year collaborative research trial we are working on led by La Trobe University , and St Vincent ’ s Hospital . MOTION stands for Monitoring the Influence of Care for patients with knee osteoarthritis .
It aims to reduce the need for knee joint replacement surgeries and the hospital burden through exercise and education .
We have been involved with the research trial planning since 2019 until MOTION ’ s commencement in 2022 . We are collaborating with St Vincent ’ s Hospital on the RISK : Reducing Inappropriate Surgery of the Knee component of the trial .
This involves delivering a communitybased OsteoArthritis Hip and Knee Service ( OAHKS ) assessment service , non-operative management programs , and referrals to other Merri Health services .
What did we achieve ?
developed treatment and escalation pathways for clients attending Merri Health for the MOTION project
New referral pathways for consumers aged 65 years + via My Aged Care
provided clinical assessment and intervention with MOTION pathways , evidence-based practice with the OAHKS assessment , and intervention and assessment by physiotherapists and dietitians
– 30 clients had been referred and received care by September 23
Good Life with osteoArthritis Denmark ( GLA : D ® is a not-forprofit initiative led by La Trobe University ) education and exercise group recommenced in Brunswick in response to consumer demand
supported the recredentialing of all our current GLA : D credentialled staff , and trained 6 new staff and our exercise physiology team
6 staff took part in a La Trobe research focus group
began collecting clinical outcome measures for the study
Where can we improve ?
it was challenging providing services within the timeframe of the study for My Aged Care referrals . Partnering with St Vincent ’ s to identify the challenges helped us design a process to benefit clients , and the referrer
limited referrals have come from St Vincent ’ s Hospital , which means we haven ’ t yet reached the target number of participants for our recruitment phase
What ’ s next ?
completing the recruitment phase of the project
providing ongoing clinical service to clients via the MOTION pathways
completing OAHKS review at four months and 12 months to assess our outcomes ; data collection for will be completed in December 2024
ongoing collaboration with St Vincent ’ s Hospital and La Trobe University
Merri Health Annual Report 2023 37