Implementation of supplemental physiotherapy following hip fracture surgery: a protocol for the process evaluation of a randomised controlled trial

Patient outcomes following low-trauma hip fracture are suboptimal resulting in increased healthcare costs and poor functional outcomes at 1 year. Providing early and intensive in-hospital physiotherapy could help improve patient outcomes and reduce costs following hip fracture surgery. The HIP fracture Supplemental Therapy to Enhance Recovery (HIPSTER) trial will compare usual care physiotherapy to intensive in-hospital physiotherapy for patients following hip fracture surgery. The complex environments in which the intervention is implemented present unique contextual challenges that may impact intervention effectiveness. This study aims to complete a process evaluation to identify barriers and facilitators to implementation and explore the patient, carer and clinician experience of intensive therapy following hip fracture surgery.