Clinical Practice Guideline for Differentiating Risks Factors for Avoidable and Unavoidable Pressure Ulcers

Pressure ulcers (PUs) present intrinsic risk factors that are not consistently identified by clinical assessments. The objective of this project was to develop a clinical practice guideline (CPG) to provide nurses with guidance in identifying and differentiating how intrinsic and extrinsic risk factors are associated with populations at risk for developing avoidable and unavoidable PUs. CPG development followed a systematic method to search the literature, organize findings, and assess the strength of the resulting evidence and its applicability to the CPG. Quality of the CPG was assessed by a panel of 8 health care professionals using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research & Evaluation II instrument. Findings of the assessment indicated a high overall quality of the CPG; its immediate use was recommended and systematic evaluation was suggested to promote usage in a wider array of health care contexts. The quality domains with the highest scores were scope, purpose, applicability, editorial independence (all 100%), rigor of development (99.7%), and clarity of presentation (99.3%). The stakeholder involvement domain demonstrated the lowest--yet still robust--score (94.4%). The CPG can be used to emphasize appropriate and specific nursing competencies for making informed decisions when identifying and describing patients at risk for developing PUs. Further research and evaluation of the use of this CPG will be useful to demonstrate how CPGs can help to decrease the incidence of avoidable PUs. The potential for positive social change relative to the prevention of PUs is high. Decreased incidence of preventable PUs will eliminate unnecessary health care costs and improve overall health outcomes of patients at all levels of socioeconomic status.