Monitoring pressure sores in a palliative care setting

Pressure sore prevention and management represents a major challenge to palliative care nurses. The balance of promoting comfort, providing appropriate care and following patient wishes can lead to dilemmas in decision making. This prospective study set out to gather more in-depth information on the extent and nature of the problem of pressure sores within a hospice. Areas investigated included prevalence and incidence rates, site and stage of sores and associated pain. Assessment using the Waterlow at risk score demonstrated that the majority of patients were within the high or very high risk category. The results have been used to inform practice, influence resource decisions and set a benchmark for future monitoring.