Wound Dressings

Course Overview

This Course provides a comprehensive overview of wound dressings, including what to consider before selecting a dressing, the properties and functions of common wound dressings, and examples of types of wound dressings that you can use in your workplace. We will take a look at most commonly used (but not all) types of wound dressings available.

Topics

• The functions and limitations of wound dressings
• The main classes and functions of wound dressings
• The purpose and properties of common wound dressings
• The components to consider in implementing a wound dressing regimen

Need

Wound dressings are a vital component where a wound requires management by a healthcare professional. There are currently a plethora of wound dressings available, with more being released every year. This can create confusion for nurses when trying to choose a wound dressing. Understanding wound dressings can assist the nurse to select an appropriate wound dressing that will create the ideal local wound environment to achieve the identified objective/s.

Knowledge and confidence regarding in choosing and using wound dressings can enhance wound progress and contribute to an optimal patient outcome. Wound dressings can contribute significantly to resource use, related to the frequency of dressing changes, the time taken to change wound dressings and the cost of the dressings themselves.

Education and training in wound dressings have been demonstrated to improve knowledge, product selection and reduce dressing change frequency. Ultimately this improves outcomes.

Purpose

The purpose of this Course is to enhance knowledge and skills in regard to understanding the various categories and types of wound dressings available, their function and their use in clinical practice.

Learning Outcomes

• State the functions and limitations of wound dressings
• Identify the main classes and functions of wound dressings
• State the purposes and properties of common wound dressings
• Explain the components to consider in implementing a wound dressing regimen

Target Audience

This Course is relevant to registered nurses and other health professionals who work in settings where they may need to manage people requiring a wound dressing.

Disclosure

No conflict of interest exists for anyone in the position to control content for this activity. Wherever possible, generic or non-proprietary names of medications or products have been used.

Educator

Sue Templeton

Sue works as a community-based nurse practitioner: wound management in Adelaide. Sue has worked in wound management since 1987 and has extensive clinical experience managing persons with a variety of acute and chronic wounds. Sue provides clinical consultancy services, develops and delivers wound management education and is involved in the development of wound management tools, policies and procedures. Sue has been actively involved in the wound management professional body at a national and local level for a number of years. Sue has undertaken clinical research and published and presented locally, nationally and internationally. Sue has been involved in the development of several national and international guidelines and is active on several state and national committees. Sue is passionate about improving the life of persons with a wound and empowering others to deliver best practice in wound management. See Educator Profile