Practitioners' knowledge base for assessing and treating chronic ulcers: a scoping review

Area of Science:

• Medical Science
• Wound Care Research

Background:

• Chronic ulcers are wounds failing to close within 30 days.
• Effective assessment and treatment require a robust knowledge base among practitioners.
• Gaps in knowledge can lead to suboptimal patient outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish the current knowledge base on chronic ulcer assessment and treatment.
• To identify medical specialties most affected by knowledge deficits in wound care.
• To determine barriers hindering practitioners' development of wound care expertise.

Main Methods:

• Scoping review adhering to PRISMA-S and JBI guidelines.
• Searched English literature from 2016-2022 using terms like 'wound care' and 'chronic wound management'.
• Utilized OneStill Search and reference list reviews for comprehensive literature retrieval.

Main Results:

• 13 qualitative studies published 2019-2021 were included.
• General/primary care practitioners showed knowledge deficits in arterial assessment, compression use, and antibiotic overuse.
• Lack of accessible, evidence-based information was identified as the primary barrier.

Conclusions:

• General/primary care practitioners exhibit a significant knowledge gap in chronic wound management.
• Further research is required across various specialties, including mid-level practitioners, to ascertain the full extent of the problem.
• Novel educational strategies are necessary to overcome existing barriers and enhance wound care knowledge.