Australas J Ageing. 2020;00:1–7. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/ajag | 1 © 2020 AJA Inc. Received: 16 November 2019 | Revised: 16 May 2020 | Accepted: 20 May 2020 DOI: 10.1111/ajag.12824 RESEARCH ARTICLE Patients from residential aged care with hip fractures—Does discharge destination from acute care affect outcomes? Lara Anderson 1 | Chris Moran 2,3 | Susan Liew 4,5 | Lara A. Kimmel 1,6 1 Physiotherapy Department, The Alfred, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 2 Department of Medicine, Peninsula Health and Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 3 Alfred Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 4 Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, The Alfred, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 5 Department of Surgery, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 6 Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Correspondence Ms. Lara Anderson, CO Physiotherapy Department, The Alfred Hospital, Commercial Rd, Prahran 3181, Australia. Email: lara.anderson@alfred.org.au Funding information Alfred Hospital, Grant/Award Number: Small Project Grant Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to describe the demographics of patients from residential aged care facilities (RACFs) who underwent fixation of hip fracture and to compare 12-month functional and mortality outcomes for those returning to their RACF with those admitted to a subacute facility (SAF) following their acute hospital stay. Methods: A retrospective review was undertaken of all patients from a RACF with high-level care needs admitted to Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, for fixation of hip fracture in 2014-2015. Data including demographic and hospital event details, length of stay (LOS), discharge destination and 12-month functional outcomes measured by the Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended (GOS-E), were collected. Factors related to discharge destination and outcomes were analysed. Results: Ninety patients from a RACF were included in this study, with 68 patients (76%) returning to their RACF and 22 (24%) admitted to a SAF after acute hospital stay. Those discharged to a SAF had an average LOS at this facility of 20.79 days (SD 8.02). The SAF group also had a longer acute LOS (7 days IQR 5-10, compared to 6 days IQR 4-7.5) but there was no difference between groups at 12 months in terms of mortality or function, with 50% of all patients deceased at this time point (n = 40) and the remaining 40 patients (50%) reporting a poor functional outcome. Conclusions: Mobility status during acute and subacute stay, and 12-month func- tional and mortality outcomes were similar in both groups irrespective of discharge destination, with the influence of cognition and concomitant medical issues currently unknown. Further research is required to evaluate the efficacy of current hip fracture models of care, the factors that influence clinician discharge planning decision-mak- ing and to interrogate new models of care that support rehabilitation and complex medical management in RACFs. KEYWORDS femoral neck fractures, health services for older people, nursing homes, patient discharge, physical therapy speciality