Health Care Challenges: The Role of Nurses in Wound Healing Management

This essay addresses the healthcare challenge of wound healing, focusing on its prevalence in Australia and the associated healthcare costs. It explores the pathophysiology of abnormal wound assessment findings and highlights the importance of accurate wound evaluation for effective treatment. Two treatment options, including advanced technological interventions and natural remedies, are discussed. The essay emphasizes the critical role of registered nurses in preventing and managing exacerbations of wound healing issues through early recognition, appropriate treatment implementation, and meticulous documentation. Furthermore, it examines the significance of collaborative care among nurses and other healthcare professionals to ensure comprehensive patient care and effective communication of treatment plans. The report concludes by underscoring the importance of addressing wound healing challenges to improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare burdens.

HEALTH CARE
CHALLENGES

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Prevalence of wound healing......................................................................................................1
Abnormal assessment findings of wound healing.......................................................................2
Two relevant treatment options for wound healing challenge....................................................3
The role of nurse while preventing exacerbations of wound healing challenge.........................3
The role of registered nurse while providing collaborative care to exacerbations of wound
healing issues..............................................................................................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
Health care is basically refers to the maintenance and improvements of health with the
help of taking certain actions that are related to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure
related to the disease along with other physical as well as mental impairments among the people.
The challenges that has been faced by the health care sector are comes under consideration of
health care issues (McCosker & et.al. 2019). This report is based upon the Wound Healing
health care challenge. The study will elaborate the aspects by identifying abnormal assessments,
explaining the role of registered nurse along with explaining services provided by nurse at the
time of collaborative care to manage exacerbations of wound healing issue.
MAIN BODY
Prevalence of wound healing
Chronic wounds are the most significant and matter of concern issue among the
Australia. The costs that has been considered by the health care professionals for chronic
wounds in Australia are considerable and equivalent to more than 4 billion Australian dollar
which is approximately 3% of the national health care expenditure. The challenge also impacts
in negative manner over the health related quality of life of affected individuals (Nussbaum &
et.al. 2018). However, it has been evaluated from various studies that with the help of evidence
based care for chronic wounds the clinical final outcome will be improved. Anyone can suffer
from chronic wound however, some people are more vulnerable because of their age and other
conditions that are belongs to Venous leg ulcers which is the most common chronic wound seen
into the Australian primary care. Moreover, the diabetic foot issues also affects majority number
of Australians each year with having further risk of enhancement of cases in future terms.
Apart from this, it has also been evaluated that there are most of the financial and
medical barriers occurs in order to reduce the chronic wounds which involves delay from
patient's end in order to see to health care professional because sometimes the patient are unable
to afford to get their wounds treated (Nethi & et.al., (2019). This resulted into most of the pain
conditions, infection and other complications which lead towards the avoidable hospitalizations
and sometimes even death conditions. These conditions reduce the patients capability to work as
well as enjoy the life style in most appropriate manner. Sufferers of chronic wounds are also at
higher risk of having mental health issues which includes the anxiety and depression which
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resulting into the social isolation, changes into body organs and most significantly decreases the
overall quality of life. This might also towards higher amount of cost incurred among the
treatment which sometimes also becoming unaffordable by the patients.
Abnormal assessment findings of wound healing
Wound is basically the disruption of skin which has been analysed by health care
professionals in order to provide appropriate care to prevent them from any further
complications. Wound healing is highly important and complex physiological process after an
injury within the cells or tissues of the body to restore function of the tissue. Although, the
healing procedure is highly dependent upon the severity of wounds, location of the wound,
extent of injury as well as various internal and external factors that will either suppress or
promote wound healing. Wound assessment is performed in order to identify the appropriate
treatment for a diverse grouping of disease processes. It is significant for all health care
professionals in order to identify or assess the wounds as it enables them to provide best care
services to their patients (Ezhilarasu & et.al. 2020). For this, they sometimes have to adopt for
specific training courses that helps them to provide standard services to their patients.
After identification of the wound, if any abnormal findings are identified, then the health
care professional or nurse must ensure that appropriate actions must be taken of. This may
include communicating the findings to the other medical team, relevant allied health care team
and the ANUM in-charge of the shift. The primary function of the nurse involves setting of
parameters in order to identify the assessment parameters and the accountability requires
appropriate planning to provide them care. This even includes the documentation as well. This
also includes the physical examination of the patient in order to justify the abnormalities that
have been found among the patient. The physical examination involves investigation of the
respiratory, cardiovascular, Neuromuscular, etc. the abnormal assessment of chronic wound
resulted into cite an indication of infection which also includes the localized pain as well as
redness at the location of wound (Shah & et.al., 2019). The wound has been evaluated over
certain measures which involves the wound bed, edge and interwound skin. This form of
assessment forms a triangle of wound assessment.
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Two relevant treatment options for wound healing challenge
As per the reliable treatment options for chronic wound healing the health care
professionals are required to regularly cleaned the wounds a long with cover them with the help
of bandages and dressings. If the wound is unable to heal after long time despite its care, special
treatments have been incurred which includes vacuum assisted closure and skin grafts are
required. This type of wound generally arises because of the poor blood circulation, diabetes and
even weak immune system. The reliable treatment of wound especially the chronic wound
consists of cleaning the wound, operation, wound dressing, compression stockings and
bandages, consumption of antibiotics, sometimes hyperbaric oxygen therapy, ultrasound
therapy, electro magnetic therapy, negative pressure wound therapy and skin grafts. All such
mentioned actions helps the patients to manage their pain related to the chronic wound (Öhnstedt
& et.al., 2019) . Moreover, the reliable treatment also involves providing psychological support
as well as treatments in order to manage the pain in order to assist people to cope better with
their pain in day to day life.
On the other hand the another option is Current treatment options for wound healing in
the health care system involves various things as there is a great strides into technological
innovations and enhanced understanding of the pathophysiology of wound healing, various
devices such as physical modalities have been developed in order to aid the management of
chronic wounds. The latest advancement also includes Intermittent pneumatic compression
which is highly effectual in order to manage the chronic wounds with severe symptoms which
requires resistant to simple compression therapy (Dong & et.al., 2018). It also involves various
types of surgical methods which are highly advanced because of the usage of technology.
Moreover, it has also become analysed that in most of the places, the chronic wounds are also
treated with the help of natural products which includes yoghurt, honey, tea tree oil and potato
peeling.
The role of nurse while preventing exacerbations of wound healing challenge
The role of the nurses in order to prevent exacerbations of wound healing is the most
significant role which has been played by them while giving care to the patients. All nurses
should know about the recognizing, assess and effectively treat routine or chronic wounds as
followed by hospital and physician protocols. The nurse who is able to recognize the wound at
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very early stage and identify the primary signs of skin disruption can help the patient to keep
their small problem from converting into big problem. They have to analyse the situations where
the patient have the higher chances of developing a wound and also check it appropriately and
on daily basis. For instance the diabetic patients requires extra care because of poor circulation
and nerve damage. Apart from this, they also have to know the prevention matters as some
wounds such as chronic wounds requires surgical incisions but complications are not allowed to
do so and hence requires more detailed evaluation and treatment offered to them in order to
make their completely fine (Kim & et.al., 2019). They should never consider any wound too
small to treat as the irresponsible behaviour also sometimes lead towards big and chronic
wounds which later provide great disadvantages to the patients. The nurses are responsible for
implementing standing orders for treating uncomplicated wounds and thus they should
document every wound in detail which involves the size, colour, stage, depth and drainage about
the wound. Apart from this, the nurses also make sure that the physician also aware about the
patients injury and has instituted a plan of care into implementation. Moreover, the health care
professional also obtain the certification as a wound care nurse in order to document their
expertise.
The role of registered nurse while providing collaborative care to exacerbations of wound
healing issues
Collaboration among the nurses and other health care staff members are highly able to
provide and ensure about the more efficient an effectual care to the patient. It also involves more
supportive environment in which all the team members can develop their own practices as well.
It has been evaluated from various studies that nurses abilities and skills in order to understand
the wound and assess their clinical conditions at early stage helps them to call upon available
resources in most suitable manner along with make them patient focused care plan and also help
them in order to implement it into practical terms with the collaboration of other staff members
as well. The chronic care requires services provided to the patients into collaborative manner
which also requires a detailed care planning for their patients to provide services to them without
any errors (Chen & et.al., 2020). Nurses who often take large portion of their day to serve
chronic wound patients are requires more assistance from doctors and other professionals as well
as their staff members also. Hence, it is the role of the nurse to share the adopted medication
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over the patient with everybody within the team so that each and every person is highly aware
about the treatment that has been provided to the patient. Moreover, the nurses who are doing
their tasks in collaborative manner should handover all the details of the patient to the other
member of team while moving away after their shift timings.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it has been concluded that there are various challenges that has
been faced by the health care settings which has been also enhanced without proper assistance
from the health care professionals and nurses among the centres. In the above represented report,
it has been evaluated that the chronic wound is highly common within the Australia which solely
requires huge amount of their expenditure over this specific feature. Moreover, the abnormal
assessment also had been discussed which provide various drawbacks to the patient along with
the ways to avoid such conditions. Furthermore, the role of nurses also had been discussed into
nursing care as well as providing care into collaborative manner.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Chen, H. & et.al. (2020). Dissolved oxygen from microalgae-gel patch promotes chronic wound
healing in diabetes. Science advances, 6(20), eaba4311.
Dong, Y. & et.al. (2018). Acceleration of diabetic wound regeneration using an in situ–formed
stem‐cell‐based skin substitute. Advanced Healthcare Materials, 7(17), 1800432.
Ezhilarasu, H. & et.al. (2020). Nanoparticle-based therapeutic approach for diabetic wound
healing. Nanomaterials, 10(6), 1234.
Kim, H. S. & et.al. (2019). Advanced drug delivery systems and artificial skin grafts for skin
wound healing. Advanced drug delivery reviews, 146, 209-239.
McCosker, L. & et.al. (2019). Chronic wounds in Australia: a systematic review of key
epidemiological and clinical parameters. International wound journal, 16(1), 84-95.
Nethi, S. K. & et.al. (2019). Recent advances in inorganic nanomaterials for wound-healing
applications. Biomaterials science, 7(7), 2652-2674.
Nussbaum, S. R. & et.al. (2018). An economic evaluation of the impact, cost, and medicare
policy implications of chronic nonhealing wounds. Value in Health, 21(1), 27-32.
Öhnstedt, E. & et.al. (2019). The discovery and development of topical medicines for wound
healing. Expert opinion on drug discovery, 14(5), 485-497.
Shah, S. A. & et.al. (2019). Biopolymer-based biomaterials for accelerated diabetic wound
healing: A critical review. International journal of biological macromolecules, 139,
975-993.
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