Sponsored: How to improve leg ulcer practice and patient outcomes
This webinar, sponsored by HARTMANN, seeks to address variation in practice and outcomes that increases care costs and healing times for lower limb wounds
This webinar, sponsored by HARTMANN, seeks to address variation in practice and outcomes that increases care costs and healing times for lower limb wounds
Approximately one million adults in the UK are affected by active leg and foot ulceration, with 560,000 having a venous leg ulcer. These lower limb wounds cost a staggering £3.1 billion but also significantly affect quality of life.
The vast majority of these wounds could be healed with evidence-based treatment. The biggest proportion of leg ulcers are due to venous insufficiency and the evidence shows that a combination of strong compression and endovenous surgery as first-line therapies can lead to 85% healing at 24 weeks.
However, UK practice is only achieving approximately 47% healing rates at 12 months.
This webinar, sponsored by HARTMANN, seeks to address the variation in practice and outcomes that increases care costs and healing times.
Independent tissue viability consultant Sarah Gardner, vice chair of Leg Matters, shows how nurses can improve their practice by using the National Wound Care Strategy recommendations as well as answering questions on intermittent compression and proactive use of products and hosiery to improve outcomes.
There is also a best practice discussion featuring nurses in general practice and the community sharing their experiences and award-winning approaches. They discuss the need for health promotion campaigns in this area and the importance of self-care and a holistic approach to improve lower leg ulcers.
Speakers
Sarah Gardner – director, WoundMatters Ltd
Ms Gardner worked in the NHS for 39 years. She worked for 18 years as a district nurse, community practice teacher and clinical development lead, and for 12 years was clinical lead of a specialist tissue viability team. She is now an independent adviser/educator through her own tissue viability consultancy business. Ms Gardner is vice chair of the Legs Matter campaign and a member of the National Wound Care Strategy Programme lower limb group.
Emma Williamson – practice nurse lead, Wickhambrook Surgery
After many years of working in primary care, Ms Williamson has experienced first-hand how debilitating below-the-knee wounds can be for patients. To improve practice, she researched and created her own holistic below-the-knee wound care pathway. Its success saw her win the wound care category of the 2019 RCN Nursing Awards.
Emily Bishop – community nursing matron, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
Ms Bishop will be talking about service capacity, how to give patients the best care, where the money comes from and what support staff need to reduce healing times.
Martha Williams – tissue viability nurse, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
Ms Williams qualified as a nurse in 2016 from the university of Worcester. Since then she has enjoyed working as a community nurse for Oxford Health Foundation Trust and has more recently moved to a new post in Oxford Health to become a senior tissue viability nurse for the community tissue viability team. She has a particular passion for care of lower limb wounds and management of chronic oedema.
