Wound Care: Taking Action for Successful Wound Healing – Joan Junkin

Learn how to take action in wound care to promote successful wound healing. If chosen carefully, dressings and other wound care products can help us reach priority wound healing goals! In this recording you will learn:

• Moisture balance (moist wound bed and dry skin around it)
• Bacterial balance (keeping the count down to a tolerable level)
• Decreased cross-contamination
• Avoiding budget breakers- such as daily dressing changes and too frequent changing of high cost dressings

OUTLINE

Optimal environment for a healable wound

• How to keeping bacterial counts down in the wound
• Infection control, wound cleansers, dressings, debridement

Moisture balance plus budget balance for wound care -achieved mostly by judicious use of dressings

• Smart dressings (these donate moisture to dry wounds; absorb any excess exudate)
• Germ control dressings help us with bacterial balance

Putting it all together- developing your wound care product formulary

• Wound characteristics that count the most for the care plan
• Match wound characteristics to the dressing that fits the needs of each wound

Modalities

• Electrical stimulation stimulates healing at all phases
• Ultrasound therapy includes non-contact option that takes pain out of the therapeutic equation

Grafts

• Autografts now include an outpatient option in addition to surgical choices
• Allografts include those with living cells or acellular human tissue
• Xenografts use collagen matrix from our animal friends to assist the healing process

OBJECTIVES

• Name 2 of the newer bacterial ‘trap’ type dressings that immobilize bacteria
• Modify a wound care plan as exudate levels change or signs of stalling out occur
• List 2 appropriate indications for using gauze dressings for more than 24 hours after surgery
• Choose a dressing most appropriate for a highly exudating wound
• Select a dressing most appropriate for a dry to minimally exudating wound
• Recognize that ‘smart’ dressings donate moisture to a dry wound and absorb exudate from an exuding wound