Orthopaedic Nurse Navigators and Total Joint Arthroplasty Preoperative Optimization: Mental Health and Housing Status-Part Five of the Movement Is Life Special ONJ Series.

The participants were nurse navigators, not patients, so the findings describe reported practice rather than patient outcomes. The paper does not state how many nurse navigators took part. The literature search is not described as a systematic review, and the paper does not report study quality or how articles were selected. No intervention was tested, so the article cannot show that screening or referral improves length of stay, complications or function. Resource availability varied, and social workers, case managers, digital tools and housing services may not be available in all settings. The authors state that the navigator responses are representative because institutions were geographically diverse, but that is their judgement, not a measured guarantee.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health supported the conduct of the research.

Do not read this as evidence that mental health screening or housing help improves joint replacement outcomes. The paper reports nurse navigator practices and a literature review. It did not test whether these steps change complications, length of stay or function.