Wound care in nursing practice is not only concerned with treatment but also prevention, particularly on patients characterized with a variety of health conditions. Some of the crucial services expected of medics with this responsibility include assessing foot wounds among diabetic persons, managing present infections, attending to pressure injuries, and creating treatment plans for the affected patients. Wound care helps minimize the pain and at the same time enhance the healing process (Welsh 58). Consequently, in developing approaches to attend to skin injuries, Medicaid and Medicare suggest that nutrition should be integrated into nursing care to treat and prevent wounds. Nonetheless, there are numerous risk factors even in healthcare facilities that need to be identified to avoid the creation and deterioration of wounds.
One of the main risk factors that often lead to wounds in medical facilities is surgery. Surgical wounds can either be as a result of a cut in the skin done by a scalpel or a placed drain, both done during medical procedures. Additionally, they are categorized into classes as clean, clean-contaminated, or dirty contaminated wounds depending on the potential risk of infections they pose on the patient (Cox 34). Even though surgeons do their best when operating on the sick, there is always a likelihood of an infection after surgery. Secondly, hospitalized individuals also get wounds or cause more damage on the existing ones through accidents such as falls within the medical facilities. The most affected groups by this risk factor are the elderly and patients with seizure-related conditions. It is imperative that nurses consider these elements to prevent and treat wounds effectively. Medicaid and Medicare services indicate that a healthcare facility’s ability to manage wounds among its patients is a key indicator of the hospital’s safety. Therefore, medical centers need to set standards regarding after-surgery care and also the recognition of common hazards to prevent hazard injuries.
Works Cited
Cox, Jill. “Wound Care 101”. Nursing, vol. 49, no. 10, 2019, pp. 32-39. Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health).
Welsh, Lynn. “Wound Care Evidence, Knowledge and Education amongst Nurses: A Semi-Systematic Literature Review”. International Wound Journal, vol. 15, no. 1, 2017, pp. 53-61. Wiley.