I have significantly developed my skill in wound care assessment and dressing, in developing this skill I now recognize the importance of documenting each dressing. Morison (2001) supports this in saying that by detailing pressure ulcer assessment it provides a basis for deciding the effectiveness of the current treatment.
Wound Clinic Journal: The Usage of Silver-Based Dressings in Chronic Venous Ulcers When nursing comes to mind, it is common to think of only acute care nurses working the floor of the local hospital. However, nurses work in a variety of settings, one of which I was able to witness at St. Mary’s wound clinic. Of the five patients that I was able to interact with here, one of the most interesting was the case of a 33-year-old male patient who presented to the clinic with a venous leg ulcer. The ulcer, located on the lateral portion of the lower leg just below the patient’s calf, was draining a significant amount of serosanguinous fluid. Additionally, cellulitis infected the entire calf area, while the skin immediately surrounding the wound
Eligible participants for the application of Type 1 formulated collagen gel must 1) have an open pressure ulcer at least 2.0 cm in diameter that did not heal after using NPWT and 2) have no symptoms of and wound or bone infection. The three patients in the study had a wound of at least 18 months’ and had showed no signs of improvement during 4 weeks of NPWT. The patients received the standard care including the treatment of moist wound healing and debridement, prevention of additional skin breakdown, and maintenance of functional abilities. Before beginning the use of collagen gel, sharp debridement was performed with additional sharp debridement performed at
The first couple of paragraphs include an explanation of what is considered a complex wound and the current available treatments. It is beneficial that the authors include an explanation of what the problem is so that the reader can have a better understanding of why this issue is of concern. The paragraphs then transition towards the types of treatments available for the problem and a description of why the current treatments are not sufficient for restorative care.
Review of Literature One of the articles that was reviewed to determine if tap water would be appropriate for wound cleansing was a systematic review by Fernandez and Griffiths (2007). In this study, various randomized and quasi-randomized controlled trials comparing the effects of water with other solutions for wound cleansing were assessed. Of the nine trials used in this study, five trials were identified that compared the rates of infection in wounds cleansed with water or normal saline (Fernandez & Griffiths, 2007). These trials involved people of all ages, with a wound of any etiology, in different settings including hospitals, communities, nursing homes, general practice, and wound clinics. The trials also included an objective measure of wound infection, such as bacterial counts, wound cultures, or wound biopsy (Fernandez & Griffiths, 2007). After data extraction and analysis of the trials, the authors concluded that there was no statistical significance between cleansing with tap water and normal saline (Fernandez & Griffiths, 2007). However, the authors also acknowledged two major flaws in this review, including “the lack of consistency in the criteria and validated tools of measurement used to assess wound infection, as well as insufficient detail in reporting the method used for
The Principles and Practice of Moist Wound Healing Abstract Caring for patients with wounds is commonly encountered in a nurse’s career in most health care settings, whether it is in neonatal, mental health, community, or aged care. In the past, wound dressings were created to absorb all exudate, believing that dry wounds will reduce the risk of infection. Within the last fifty years, the concept of moist wound therapy has become the most effective approach to wound care. Before treating any wound, it is important to discover the underlying cause and consider other possible factors that may impact on the healing process and deliver a systematic and rational approach towards wound care assessment. Nurses must have a basic understanding of
The value of total joint arthroplasty is well established. Doctors, nurses, and patients know that the procedures are common and effective, and that successful surgeries have great benefits. Successful operations are known to relieve pain and to improve the quality of life for patients and families. Should one of the
Surgical wound that results from delayed healing in a gastro-surgical ward is one of the most challenging tasks for us. Any dehisced wound that is complicated by wound infection and in relation to malnutrition, age, and different comorbidities are one of the dilemmas that are regularly happening in our ward. Wound management in our ward will require a rigid assessment in every shift of the day, this will require proper wound assessment and referral to the healthcare team when there are any changes to the wound or there is no progress in the healing for wound. Various changes of dressings are also used to pack the wound, and this will also depend on individual nurses that are assessing the wound. There is also a common practice of trial
Chronic wounds and Pressure ulcers: Chronic wounds are defined as the wounds fail to heal within a period of 3 months. Further, chronic wounds represent a significant health care problem since they affect 1 % of the western population. Common chronic wounds categories are pressure ulcers, diabetic foot ulcers, venous ulcers, and ischemic ulcers [19]. According to The National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP) “a pressure injury is localized damage to the skin and underlying soft tissue usually over a bony prominence or related to a medical or other device”. The damage could be presented as unbroken skin or wide-open ulcer and might be painful. The injury arises due to sever or continued pressure or combined shear and pressure. Soft tissue
Introduction: Wound infections are a common type of infections that may contribute to longer hospital stay. Most of these
For wound check offs, I had to practice cleaning and dressing four different types of wounds. The wounds include an open abdominal wound, necrotic thigh wound, heel wound and stump wound. In the clinical setting, I had the chance to do two dressing changes, both times were an open abdominal wound, this is explained in the greatest accomplishment. The last check off was injections. We had to give two injections but there were three types all together, subcutaneous, IV push and intramuscular. In the clinical setting, I gave two subcutaneous injections and I did an IV push of Pepcid through a central line.
Infections are a significant problem in many medical and environmental situations. These infections are caused by an array of different microorganisms including bacteria, protozoa, fungi, yeasts, and viruses. The prevention of infections, and reduction or elimination of an infection once it is established is of importance,6 particularly in the area
• Respect the soft tissue: meticulous surgical technique and wound closure, and reducing surgical time helps minimize the risk of recurrent infection.18,20 Furthermore, copious irrigation is considered an effective strategy to reduce the number of pathogens in the surgical wound
Wound Care Specialists Developing a pressure prevention plan takes time and requires leadership and team work. The Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society works to provide standards of practice for wound care nurses, maintain continuing nursing education for professional development, and works to provide quality wound care to patients (WOCN, 2011). They can influence patient care directly and indirectly by the application of evidenced-based practice. Improving the quality of care involves nursing practice as well as clinical and
There are several methods to close surgical wounds. Its choice depends on the injury, on the patient and on the preference of the surgeon. The most common methods used are interrupted and continuous suture (Figure 1). In these methods, the suture goes through the tissue of on side of the