Background
Wound care management has now become of the most challenging aspects of nursing on a global level due to the increasing pattern of wound incidence caused by various chronic diseases and accidents (Powers et al., 2016). Thus, the tendencies of would care between different facilities are now being modified according to the level of technological advancement available within the facility and the overall issue scope within the area. Naturally, the major responsibility of wound care belongs to the nurses, as they are the ones who are in charge of the patient’s condition assessment and follow-up treatment prescribed by the attending physician. According to the researchers, the major challenge of the following field of medical care generally contains a variety of factors, including:
- The discrepancy in the level of medical professionals’ expertise;
- The overall healthcare value in both professional and social contexts;
- The quality of the interventions conducted by medical professionals;
- The accessibility to high-quality equipment for wound care intervention (Gray et al., 2018).
Hence, taking the following aspects into consideration, it may be outlined that the overall perception of wound care in today’s nursing environment is a highly ambiguous matter that requires a detailed examination of the socio-cultural and financial environment of the wound care management facilities. However, when taking a look at the local tendencies on the issue, some of the common features of the field might be indicated. Hence, the following research paper is primarily aimed at analyzing the notion of wound care through the prism of SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis.
Strengths
The first absolute advantage of the wound care system in the global context is the accessibility to the empirical data on the issue management. The researchers claim the wound care assessment and treatment to be one of the most widespread issues concerning nursing practice, creating the ability to predict the potential wound risks depending on the health condition presented (Gray et al., 2018). Hence, over the years of extensive practice in the field, the practitioners have managed to outline the peculiarities of wound typology and treatment, gradually enhancing the approach techniques number.
Another significant strength of the following aspect of nursing practice is the presence of an extensive model of wound prevention and care within the facilities. According to the researchers, the emergence of wounds in terms of treatment, especially when the notion concerns chronic patterns of wound development, is, by all means, detrimental for the patients, the practitioners, and the overall economic situation (Scalamandré & Bogie, 2020). Thus, over the past years, a primary focus has been placed on the attempt to identify a framework that would detect the possibility of wound development in the early stages when the identification itself is not available for the nurses and doctors. Hence, a variety of smart technological tools is now available in order to identify wound probability prior to clinical assessment.
Finally, one more strength of wound care is the technological advancement itself, creating a basis for timely wound care management. Over the years, revolutionary technological advancements have managed to provide professionals with the opportunity to treat patients more efficiently with the use of technology. As a result, wound care management obtains a new perspective in terms of economy and treatment duration.
Weaknesses
When speaking of the challenging aspects of technology, the first thing that should be emphasized is the lack of financial support in the sphere of research. Having conducted a cross-national survey in the UK, the scholars found that the vast majority of nurses and practitioners feel rather upset about the economic picture and the research sponsorship and scholarly grants (Gray et al., 2018). As a result, the nurses are now still faced with wound care treatment that is considered to be outdated in inefficient. Moreover, the lack of financial support is also visible in the examples of the lack of preventive technology in the field despite the fact that the investment in such an endeavor would be recouped shortly.
Another major weakness concerning the issue of wound care is the global tendency of sanitary negligence, with practitioners paying minor attention to the sterilization of equipment. According to the researchers, a major part of the wound emergence incidence is directly correlated with the lack of attention paid to equipment and hand sterilization, creating a beneficial environment for wound creation (Andersen, 2019). Hence, while the vast majority of scholars are focused on the development of sophisticated technology to prevent the dissemination of wound prevalence, some nurses are still poorly aware of the fundamental rules that are to be applied in terms of interaction with patients.
Finally, a major weakness of the wound management paradigm is the frequency of untimely intervention. Generally, in order to avoid the possibility of creating a wound, nurses are to create a detailed intervention plan encompassing both primary and secondary assessment of the patient’s condition. However, quite often, the intervention itself is performed later, allowing the wound to develop shortly after the medical interference.
Opportunities
The first and one of the most important opportunities in terms of wound care management is the availability of policy development in order to secure both governmental and economic support for the field. The issue of wound care has always been present in the sphere of medical management, declaring a variety of challenges for the overall practice functioning. Hence, once a detailed plan on the issue improvement is introduced, there is a great probability of the policy introduction, aiming at the reduction of the incidence rates within the field.
Another significant opportunity for the system would be the introduction of explicit wound care education for nurses in order to raise their awareness of the treatment and prevention process, along with giving them the opportunity to practice some primary skills on wound prevention and immediate handling (Welsh, 2018). Such a plan might be easily integrated into the process of nurses’ professional growth, as there is an extensive database on wound care management due to the decades of practice. Hence, the following intervention in the educational process would result in a tangible result of prevalence reduction.
Finally, the process of rapid wound care management in developed countries provides the opportunity to introduce new practices to the facilities in the developing states through the prism of globalization. In fact, the opportunity for professional cooperation will eventually lead to the overall pattern of reducing the risk of the development of chronic wounds among patients. Hence, with a considerable discrepancy existing in the field, it is the collaboration and knowledge exchange that might benefit the overall picture.
Threats
When speaking of the threats existing in the field of wound care management, the notion of litigation should be of primary importance for the practitioners. According to the researchers, wounds are among the most popular precedents for legal actions taken by patients in terms of treatment negligence (Krasner, n.d.). Hence, any minor misconduct considering the process or wound preventive practice might result in a lawsuit. In order to address the threat, it is necessary to take into account the nurses’ awareness of their legal obligations and responsibilities.
Another threat in the context is the inability to secure proper surveillance over the nurses’ actions and wound assessment. As far as wound care is concerned, the area of nursing responsibility reaches such an extent that it is barely possible to examine care protocols in a timely manner before the time to eliminate the risk is eliminated. Such a behavioral pattern in the workplace may result in the nurse’s lack of responsibility and need to conduct a prompt patient assessment. To address the issue, it is necessary to establish a proper model for nurse management and supervision so that the aforementioned risk of being legally accused of malpractice could be avoided.
Finally, the threat that remains unchanged despite major efforts is the issue of wound prediction inaccuracy. Thus, considering all the scientific breakthroughs introduced in the field of wound prevention, the risk of the inability to identify a wound remains relatively high (Galdino Júnior et al., 2018). In order to address the threat, it is of paramount importance to consider all the possible factors of wound emergence even if the following aspect is not assessed with the help of technological equipment.
References
Andersen, B. M. (2019). Wound care: skin and soft tissue. In Prevention and Control of Infections in Hospitals (pp. 273-277). Springer, Cham.
Galdino Júnior, H., Veiga Tipple, A. F., Rodrigues de Lima, B., & Bachion, M. M. (2018). Nursing process in the care of patients with surgical wounds healing by secondary intention. Cogitare Enfermagem, 23(4).
Gray, T. A., Rhodes, S., Atkinson, R. A., Rothwell, K., Wilson, P., Dumville, J. C., & Cullum, N. A. (2018). Opportunities for better value wound care: a multiservice, cross-sectional survey of complex wounds and their care in a UK community population. BMJ Open, 8(3), e019440.
Krasner, D. L. Legal perspectives related to wound care. Web.
Powers, J. G., Higham, C., Broussard, K., & Phillips, T. J. (2016). Wound healing and treating wounds: Chronic wound care and management. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 74(4), 607-625.
Scalamandré, A., & Bogie, K. M. (2020). Smart technologies in wound prevention and care. In Innovations and Emerging Technologies in Wound Care (pp. 225-244). Academic Press.
Welsh, L. (2018). Wound care evidence, knowledge and education amongst nurses: a semi‐systematic literature review. International Wound Journal, 15(1), 53-61.