Making It Personal: The Impact of the Wound Care Nurse Becoming a Patient With a Wound

Objective: To recognize the personal impact when a certified wound care nurse becomes the patient with a dehisced, surgical wound treated with a Single-Use Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) device.

Challenge: The treatment of chronic, dehisced surgical wounds is a multi-billion-dollar industry often overlooking the human impact. Patients with non-healing surgical wounds are challenging, and experienced wound care nurses anticipate patients and their wounds will progress in a certain manner. However, these nurses cannot know what their patients are experiencing on a personal level when undergoing multiple treatment modalities. For a certified wound care nurse who experienced a dehisced surgical wound after a hemi-colectomy, a plan of care needed to be devised that would not interfere with her work, ADLs, and socialization.

Method: Wound care modalities included anti-microbial gauze and anti-bacterial PVA foam but due to drainage and periwound irritation, standard dressings didn’t allow the patient to resume life as normal.

Solution: Provision of care by a PA-C in the home allowed for discussions with the patient regarding the personal impact of this non-healing wound. Utilization of a Single-Use NPWT device was implemented. This small, canister-free, low profile, disposable system includes a 4- layer multi-function dressing and silicone adhesive layer. Moisture vapor transmission managed exudate and the dressing could be left in place up to 7 days, allowing the patient to resume work, home and social activities.

Dressings utilized under the device dressing included bacteria-binding packing strips, super-absorbent silicone foam, sodium chloride impregnated gauze, and a collagen-cellulose with silver. Oral antibiotics were prescribed for infection management.

Results: Wound resolution utilizing Single-Use NPWT was achieved on day 56.

Conclusion: The Single-Use NPWT devise is a patient friendly method of wound care that allows the patient to “live life” while exudate is managed, skin irritation is minimized, and personal privacy is protected.