Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
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To assess the association between use of clinical pathways for hip fracture and changes in the rates of five inpatient complications and short-term mortality. ⋯ An association was observed between clinical pathway use and lower odds of four common complications of hospitalization after hip fracture; only a small, statistically insignificant association was observed between pathway use and changes in short-term mortality, suggesting that assessments of hospital quality based on short-term mortality may not reflect important improvements in patient outcomes that hospitals may achieve using clinical pathways.