Wound care practice in nursing homes

The majority of nursing homes were using wound assessment charts, pressure ulcer risk calculators and pressure ulcer grading systems, but it was not possible to assess whether they were being used properly; From the information collected, staff appeared to be using wound care products in appropriate situations; All respondents were eager to learn and suggested a variety of areas for future education; Pressure-relieving equipment available in the homes was inadequate and where available staff were not always certain of its correct use; There appeared to be confusion regarding cleansing and managing infected wounds. Subsequent developments to the service include formulation of a wound care course, the development of a link nurse system to promote dissemination of information, pressure ulcer prevalence monitoring and the use of a wound management product formulary.