Course Overview

Effective wound dressing regimens play a critical role in the optimisation of a patient’s wound and ability to achieve both their short-term and long-term care objectives.

This Ausmed Course provides learners with clarity and confidence in wound dressing practices. Through the exploration of dressing types and evidence-based practice recommendations, healthcare professionals will emerge with an enhanced ability to select, apply and troubleshoot wound dressings, ultimately improving patient outcomes and contributing to optimised wound management within their healthcare settings.

Topics

• Wound dressing fundamentals
• Types of conventional and specialised wound dressings
• Understanding the different functions of wound dressings
• Wound dressing regimens and care objectives
• Best practices in wound dressing documentation
• Troubleshooting wound dressing-related complications

Need

Effective wound care hinges on sound clinical decision-making that is informed by a comprehensive understanding and selection of appropriate wound dressing products, guided by a consideration for the specific needs of the patient.

However, studies have identified inadequate wound management knowledge and skills across various healthcare professions, including nurses, paramedics and general practitioners. This is indicative of a potential systemic deficiency in the provision of education on the topic of wound management.

Specifically in relation to the topic of wound dressings, the enormity of available products and variety of clinical applications likely further contribute to confusion and a lack of understanding among healthcare professionals when trying to apply knowledge in practice.

Therefore, new and effective education on wound dressings is required in order to enhance clinicians' wound dressing selection and assessment skills.

Purpose

The purpose of this Ausmed Course is to provide healthcare professionals with a clear understanding of the key principles of wound dressings and equip learners with the skills necessary to effectively select, apply, change and troubleshoot wound dressings in their practice.

Learning Outcomes

1. Apply an understanding of the pivotal role of wound dressings to facilitate optimal wound outcomes for patients in your care.
2. Confidently choose appropriate dressings according to specific wound characteristics in order to achieve optimal patient outcomes.
3. Advocate for the integral role of meticulous wound care documentation in ensuring continuity of care and informed decision-making.
4. Promptly identify and address common complications related to wound dressings, such as dressing dislodgement, allergic reactions and infection risks.

Target Audience

Nurses and other healthcare professionals working in all clinical areas where proficiency in choosing and using wound dressings is a required practice.

Disclosure

No conflict of interest exists for anyone in the position to control content for this activity. This course discusses general principles for dressing wounds and does not cover specific, brand-name wound dressings.

Educators

Presented by

Sue Templeton View profile

Sue Templeton RN, BN, MNSc(NP) is an experienced community-based nurse practitioner based in Adelaide who has been specialising in wound management since 1987. With a wealth of clinical expertise, she provides consultancy services and develops and delivers wound management education. Additionally, she has been involved in the development of wound management resources and tools. Sue has been actively engaged with the wound management professional community at local, national and international levels, conducting clinical research, publishing and presenting on the subject. Sue is passionate about improving the lives of persons with a wound and empowering others to deliver best practices in wound management.

Peer reviewed by

Karen Wendland View profile