University Nursing: Pressure Area Care Evidence-Based Report

This report delves into the principles of evidence-based practice within the context of pressure area care (PAC), a critical aspect of nursing aimed at preventing and managing pressure injuries or ulcers. It emphasizes the three pillars of evidence-based practice: patient values, clinical expertise, and relevant research. The report explores systematic reviews as a cornerstone of evidence-based practice, highlighting their role in unbiased analysis and informing best practices. It then discusses the characteristics of Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) and their significance in generating reliable evidence. Key epidemiological concepts like incidence, prevalence, morbidity, and mortality are defined and discussed in relation to pressure injuries, providing insights into their prevalence rates in Australia and their impact on patient outcomes. The report underscores the importance of understanding these factors for effective PAC, supporting the overall goal of providing safe, person-centered, and evidence-based nursing care.

Running head: PRESSURE AREA CARE
PRESSURE AREA CARE
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Three elements of evidence based practice
Evidence based practice is one of the modernised care models that helps the nurses in
critically appraise the situations and also provide better care to the patients. The evidence
based practice is primarily dependent on three fundamental factors which are termed as the
three pillars of evidence based practice. On the basis of these three fundamental pillars a
nurse can be able to understand and the further planning of the care. The pillars are as
follows:
 Patient values
 Clinical expertise
 Relevant research on the basis of the patient’s condition (Fallon et al., 2015).
On the basis of these three pillars the evidence based practice for the pressure care practice
(PAC) can be done which is the care for the pressure injuries on the soft tissues or the
pressure ulcers produced by the bed shore or other injuries as it helped in the knowledge
about the disease and the treatment on the basis of the patient needs and help in the clinical
practice (Liversedge et al., 2018).
Systematic review
Systematic review is based on the pre selected question and the critical analysis of the
findings based on that question. The critical analysis would be helpful in setting a clear
objective and help the nurses in gathering an unbiased knowledge and the best practice policy
for the situation in this case the PAC. The findings from the systematic review is very much
helpful in the process of clinical practice thus the systematic review of the relevant search or
the findings play a key role in evidenced based practice (Saunders & Vehviläinen-Julkunen,
2016).

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Hierarchy of systematic review
Evidenced based practice is dependent on the researches based on which the clinical
practice would proceed. Thus the relevant search of the evidences is a critical aspect of this
practice model. However, the research of evidences needs clear and critical analysis without
any biased point of view and the systematic review helps in the proper analysis of the factors
found in the research procedure. Thus on the basis of the importance and dependency the
systematic review put into the level one hierarchy of the evidence based practice factors
(Griffiths et al., 2016).
Meaning of systematic review
The systematic review is the most important factor in the evidence based practice and
it helps in the critical and non-biased analysis of the evidences collected on the relevancy of
the situation of the patient. The systematic review helps in the proper analysis of the clinical
condition on the basis of the searched evidences and thus properly collaborates with the
clinical expertise and the patient value factor in this case the PAC. That is why this factor of
the evidence based practice is placed in the level 1 hierarchy as it is the most important factor
and without this factor the practice model is incomplete (Khalil et al., 2016).
Characteristics of Randomized Controlled Care
There are two main characters of the Randomized Controlled Care (RCT) based on
which the practice provide a unbiased and proper result. The characters of the RCT are as
follows:
 Randomized selection of participants with minimized but distinct variations
 Comparison of treatment provided to one group and the control group without the
treatment given in order to determine the effectiveness of the treatment.

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RCT is one of the important factors for the evidence based practice it is also put into the
level of hierarchical position among the factors of the evidence based practice (Dionne-Odom
et al., 2015). RCT would be helpful in the knowledge gathering about the prevalence,
incidence, mortality and the morbidity rate of pressure injuries or pressure ulcers thus a
proper knowledge about the PAC for the nurses.
Incidence
Incidence rate is the measurement of the occurrence of disease and other incident.
Here in the context of nursing care and the evidence based practice the incidence is the rate of
new disease. The rate of the new disease can be measured on the basis of time period that is
per month, per year or per day scale of measurement (Ferlay et al., 2015). In case of pressure
area care which refers to the care for the pressure ulcer formed during injuries or bed shore
for long time would be a very common factor and the incidence rate for this condition is
higher as the risk of soft tissue injury is one of the basic factors for the patient.
Yearly PI incidence rate of Australia
In case of the motor neurone disease incidence rate of Australian continent the
incidence rate can be collected from the Government documents that ranges from 1.9% up to
59% among the aged people and also in the paediatric patients it has been seen that 0.25% to
27% approximately. Other than these the critical patients in critical care also showed the
effects ranges from 3% to 53.4% (Cec.health.nsw.gov.au, 2019).
Prevalence
Prevalence rate of a disease is primarily dependent on the incidence rate of the
disease. Other than the disease incidence the prevalence also depends on the factor of the
duration of the disease among the population. The prevalence rate of a disease is the actual
number of people alive with the disease along with the period of time with the disease or the

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particular day the disease diagnosed. The duration of the disease and the incidence rate of the
disease is the factor for the calculation of the prevalence rate (Ogden et al., 2015). In case of
pressure injuries or pressure ulcers the prevalence rate is dependent on the disease type and
the factor of the aftermath of operation or others. The prevalence rate of pressure injuries in
Australia is up to 37% (Health Times, 2019).
Morbidity
The association to any kind of mental or physical disease in a period of time is termed
as morbidity. The morbidity rate of a population can be calculated on the basis of the
association of people with any disease and the duration of the disease among the population
as well. The PI is a common aftermath of different acute diseases and also in the operation
cases. The timeframe of the PI is the actual morbidity rate of a population in accordance with
age and incidence rate. Thus the PAC is needed in these cases. The psychological or
physiological illness of the population over a time period is actually termed as the morbidity
rate of the population as well. The morbidity and the incidence rate are closely related in that
factor (Case & Deaton, 2017).
Mortality
Mortality rate is the factor which can be termed as the death rate of people in a given
population, affected by specific disease or incident or other factors. The mortality rate can be
calculated on the basis of a specific population of a geographic area or on the basis of a given
disease. Thus the death rate of a population from the effect of a disease or any incidence is
formally termed as the mortality rate. For example the mortality rate from pressure injuries in
Australia is 67.6% (Health Times, 2019).

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