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The Value of Nurses Specialized in Wound, Ostomy, and Continence: A Systematic Review
Corey Heerschap1, Victoria Duff
1At the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre, Barrie, Ontario, Canada, Corey Heerschap, MScCH (WPC), BScN, RN, NSWOC, WOCC(C), IIWCC, is Wound/Ostomy Clinical Nurse Specialist, Interprofessional Practice Department; and Victoria Duff, BScN, is Student, Research Institute. Acknowledgments: The authors thank Dr Kimberly LeBlanc and Dr Giulio Didiodato for external review of the manuscript and acknowledge the author's time allocated to this study by the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre Interprofessional Practice Department. Ms Duff received an award from the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre Research Institute to fund a research assistant position during manuscript development. The authors have disclosed no other financial relationships related to this article. Submitted November 2, 2020; accepted in revised form January 6, 2021.
Objective:
To critically appraise peer-reviewed evidence concerning the value, or implied sense of worth or benefit, of nurses specialized in wound, ostomy, and continence (WOC) care.
Data Sources:
The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses was used to systematically review current literature in a single database from 2009 to the date of search (July 2019).
Study Selection:
The initial search retrieved 2,340 elements; 10 studies were retained following removal of duplicate records, title and abstract reviews, and application of the inclusion/exclusion criteria.
Data Extraction:
Literature was graded and critiqued with regard to design and research quality and then synthesized using a narrative approach.
Data Synthesis:
Nine values that WOC nurses demonstrate were identified: improved quality of life for patients, teaching and mentoring, cost reduction, improved efficiency, improved wound outcomes, improved incontinence outcomes, advanced treatments, research, and leadership.
Conclusions:
Although current studies suggest that there is value in the WOC nurse role, in all areas of the trispecialty, there is a need for high-quality literature with higher-level designs focused on bias reduction.
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