The Management of Pressure Ulcers in Primary and Secondary Care: A Clinical Practice Guideline [Internet]

Excerpt

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE or the Institute) collaborated to develop a clinical guideline on the management of pressure ulcers in primary and secondary care. Identification of the topic emerged from a consultation process with RCN members and referral of the topic by the Department of Health and Welsh Assembly Government. This document describes the methods used for developing the guidelines and presents the resulting recommendations. It is the source document for the NICE (abbreviated version for health professionals) and Information for the public (patient and carer) versions of the guidelines, which will be published by NICE. The Guideline was produced by a multidisciplinary Guideline Development Group (GDG) and the development process was wholly undertaken by the RCN.

The main areas examined by the Guideline are: holistic assessment for the risk of delayed healing or complications of having a pressure ulcer; the ulcer assessment; pressure-relieving support surfaces for the treatment of pressure ulcers; mobility, positioning and re-positioning for the treatment of pressure ulcers; dressings and topical agents for the treatment of pressure ulcers; debridement for the treatment of pressure ulcers; nutritional support; surgery for the treatment of pressure ulcers; therapeutic ultrasound for the treatment of pressure ulcers; electrotherapy and electromagnetic therapy for the treatment of pressure ulcers; and topical negative pressure for the treatment of pressure ulcers.