The beneficent nature of chronic wound care

The principle of beneficence is one of four bioethical principles, which also include non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice. Beneficence is a moral term; it is the obligation to act for the benefit of others. Social policy is developed from informed choices with regard to a balance between costs, risks, and beneficence. Wound care clinicians conduct clinical and economic outcome studies to guide those responsible for making reimbursement decisions for patients with costly complications of chronic illness. This column discusses the balance of benefits, costs, and risks in the face of the principle of beneficence. Prevention, as an alternative to costly treatment of recurrent wounds, is presented as a strategy to balance cost, risk, and beneficence.