Non-traditional approaches, including electrical stimulation, hyperbaric oxygen, growth factors and skin equivalents, and negative pressure wound therapy, are also showing promising results (Resources for Managing Hospital-Acquired Conditions, 2008).
Organizational level activities for dealing with hospital-acquired pressure ulcers include:
developing and adhering to a written plan and procedure for preventing and treating pressure ulcers educating and training staff in the care processes associated with skin assessment, staging of pressure ulcers, prevention strategies, and treatment modalities carefully selecting and provisioning the necessary equipment and supplies to prevent and treat pressure ulcers the measuring and monitoring of pressure ulcer rates that depend on honest, transparent reporting of all pressure ulcers (Resources for Managing Hospital-Acquired Conditions, 2008).
The significance of this study in regards to nursing is made explicit when the author states that nursing staff play a major role in the prevention, treatment, management and care of pressure ulcers. Some of the preventive steps to reduce the prevalence of pressure ulcers either by the staff or attendants of the patients included: change of side or position (95%); removal of wrinkles from the bed sheet (60%) and use of cushions or air rings (55%). More than 50% nurses reported 'care of back' as a preventive step. In addition, cleanliness (35%); and massaging (25%) also help in the prevention of pressure ulcers. Although care of pressure points is a fundamental care activity many nurses are unable to adopt preventive measures dues to lack of time and low priority given to prevention of pressure ulcers in the clinical practice. Thus there is a great need to educate not only the nurses but relatives of the patients to adopt certain preventive strategies to reduce the prevalence of pressure ulcers (Vati, Chopra, and Walia, 2004).
A skin care plan to prevent tissue injury in patients at risk for developing pressure sores is necessary to promote wound healing in patients. The staff must be involved in planning, implementing, and evaluating the skin care plan in order for it to be effective. Developing a shared vision with a sense of team spirit within the unit can promote common interests and goals. This can ultimately lead to inspiration, motivation, and accountability. The nursing staff must rely on the management skills of the unit manager in order to provide guidance that includes clear expectations and maintains a challenging and effective approach. The role of the nurse leader is significant in shaping the environment of care. Nurse executives play a vital role in providing quality patient care and safety. The chief nursing officer, the unit manager, and the bedside nurse must all collaborate to address this nurse-sensitive issue and improve performance by exceeding benchmarks of the National Data base of Nursing Quality Indicators (Role Nurse Leaders Can Play in Reducing the Incidence of Pressure Sores: Addressing a Complex Issue, 2007).
Hospitals in the United States are growing more concerned with the rising number of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers. And in order to try and reduce this, hospitals have begun...
Pressure Ulcers in the Elderly During Hospital Stays Pressure ulcers are potentially fatal skin lesions that develop especially in frail, elderly patients on bony or cartilaginous areas such as the sacrum, elbows, and ankles. Within acute care in the United States, the incidence of pressure ulcers lies between 0.4% and 38%. The incidence within long-term and home care is significantly lower while intensive care units report that 8% to 40% of
Pressure Ulcers/Case Study Bedsores are also known as pressure ulcers. They are lesions that are primarily caused when soft tissues are pressed against bone for a long period of time, restricting blood flow to the area. These often occur when a patient is immobile or reclining in a recovery bed for a long period of time. They are common on the hips, elbows, knees, ankles and even the back of the
Otherwise, the resources are either short or unavailable. These situations tend to make gains in pressure ulcer care quickly vanish (Cuddigan et al.). Lastly, national records on pressure ulcer rates have remained incomplete and unreliable (Cuddigan et al. 2001). Hospital discharge records do not all reflect or include pressure ulcer cases even if the patients reach Stage III or IV. In addition, these records are unable to recognize and tally
Summary of Common and Conflicting Findings Hart, Bergquist, Gajewski & Dunton (2006); Gunningberg (2005); Wipke-Tevis, Williams, Rantz, Popejoy, Madsen, Petroski & Vogelsmeier (2004); and Vanderwee, Grypdonck, DeBacquer & Defloor (2006) all indicate that pressure ulcers are unnecessarily common among patients in nursing care facilities. Pressure ulcers are generally defined as "lesions caused by unrelieved pressure, resulting in damage of underlying tissue," (Hart et al. 2006, p. 257). They occur mainly along
Prevention / Intervention Screening tools can be a cost effective means of identifying patients who are at risk for developing pressure ulcers. These tools identify specific areas that need to be addressed and watched closely. After areas of risk are identified, targeted interventions can be put into place that can further reduce the risk of pressure ulcer development. Knowledge of pressure ulcer prevention strategies is vital. Implementation of targeted prevention strategies may
Preventing Pressure Ulcers in Postoperative Patients this is a nursing research evidence-based practice project paper. THIS IS A NURSING PROJECT. SINGLE SPACE. 6 PAGES FOR THE PROJECT, 2 PAGES FOR THE LISTED INFO Directions: 1. You developed EVIDENCE-BASED NURSING PRACICE PROJECT (EBP). What are the best practices to prevent pressure ulcers in postoperative patients? This project aims at implementing evidence-based prevention strategies for pressure ulcers in postoperative patients. There are many risk factors associated
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