Prevention, Education, and Compliance in Skin Hygiene are the Cornerstones of Wound Care

PROBLEM:

Medicare/Medicaid and private insurances recognize the link between prevention, education, and compliance in skin hygiene and reduction in costly infections; outpatient visits and hospital  admissions.¹  The accountability of the patient and/or the healthcare providers in skin hygiene is the cornerstone in wound care.  Published literature documents assessment of the wound and surrounding tissue cannot be performed until the skin can be viewed for complete evaluation.²

PAST MANAGEMENT:

For 13 years this Wound Clinic has initiated a skin care program using concentrated melting moisturizing creme to lubercate, protect, and heal skin.  We have reported in case studies that concentrated melting moisturizing creme enhances this process by facilitating the removal of callius formations, scabs, other wound product residue, and dry flakey skin without causing tissue trauma so the body surface can be properly assessed.^3-4

APPROACH/OUTCOME:

This multiple case study poster was created as an educational tool on proper skin hygiene for all patients and healthcare providers.  First the patient needs to be properly educated in skin hygiene; re-assessed that the process is being performed correctly; and then the areas of non-compliance need to be firmly addressed.  This clinic still finds an exceedingly high number of patients, physicians or healthcare providers who do not address these fundamental issues.

CONCLUSION:

These case studies can be an educational tool for everyone involved in proper skin hygiene.  In this clinic the use of concentrated melting moisturizing creme when used per protocol has enhanced the skin for proper visualization and assessmnet and is easy to use.  It re-iterates that prevention, education, and compliance is skin hygiene are the cornerstones in wound care for all Wound/Ostomy/Continence Clinics.  Lack of following these components is creating a fiscal tsunami in our healthcare sysstem.