Wound Care Dressing Change 1

Demonstration Speech: How to Change A Wound Care Dressing

Communication Dynamics

Professor Pucci

January 31, 2021

Wound Care Dressing Change 2

Introduction

What is a wound? A wound is defined as “an injury to the body (as from violence,

accident, or surgery) that typically involves laceration or breaking of a membrane (such as the

skin) and usually damage to underlying tissues” (Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary). Wound

care is a type of treatment for pressure sores, skins ulcers and other wounds that break down the

skin. Wound care is important for wound healing. Wound care can prevent more serious

complications from occurring. Pressure ulcers can also be called bed sores that are medically

described as decubitus ulcers, or wounds that develop at pressure points on the body. Pressure

sores develop in immobilized patients who are continually positioned the same way in a bed,

chair or wheelchair or who may be in traction or paralyzed with limited range of motion. Other

wounds that benefit from wound care are diabetic foot ulcers, traumatic ulcers caused by injury,

arterial and vein ulcers caused by lack of circulation, and burns.

The purpose of wound care is that it promotes healthy healing and prevents infections. It

involves the cleaning of the wound with an appropriate solution and covering with an appropriate

dressing. The wound dressing is designed to protect the wound, improve healing and reduce

pain. You need a physician’s orders for wound care dressing and to treat pressure sores. Wounds

can be caused in a number of different ways by a variety of different objects, if it is blunt, sharp

or projectile. Wounds are put into different categories and stages depending on the cause and

resulting injury: incision, laceration, abrasion, puncture, avulsion, and amputation. An incision

is a cut caused by a knife or another sharp object, a laceration is a jagged or tearing of soft

tissues, an abrasion is caused by rubbing or scarping the skin, a puncture is a piercing that causes

a small hole in the tissues, an avulsion is a forcible or partial tearing away of tissues, and

amputation is the loss of a body part like an arm or a finger.

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Overview and Supplies

So now that we know all about wounds let’s talk about what to expect and how to prepare

yourself while changing a wound dressing. When changing a wound dressing you can expect to

see many different things depending on the type of wound. For a minor cut it may just be

replacing the old bandage with a new one, but for major wounds it may be removing dead skin or

draining the wound. You just have to follow the doctors’ orders and request.

To prepare for a wound dressing change always perform the following steps to ensure

patient safety. First you want to perform hand hygiene, provide patient privacy, introduce

yourself, use two patient identifiers, and then explain the process or procedure to the patient and

position them appropriately and comfortably. You then want to assess the patient’s wounds as

well as the pain level, if needed medicate the patient. Next gather all the materials and supplies

that is needed and always make sure to bring extra just in case. The supply list should include

sterile and non-sterile gloves, biohazard bag, normal saline to clean the wound, measuring

device, scissors, topical ointments or antibiotics, sterile cotton swabs, 4×4 gauze pads and wound

tape.

Procedure – Wound Assessment and Prep

Finally, to start the procedure you want to follow these steps. First you want to wash

your hands again or hand sanitizer and apply clean non-sterile gloves. Then you want to remove

the old dressing carefully and assess the old dressing for odor, size, color, and the amount of

drainage if any and then dispose of the old dressing. Next you want to inspect the wound,

comparing it to how the others noted how it looked and do measurements to check width, length,

and depth with a sterile cotton swab and measuring tool. Also, you want to check for any signs of

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infection and for any unhealthy or healthy tissue. Once that is done, you need to dispose of soiled

supplies in biohazard bag.

Procedure — Cleaning

Now that we have prepped for the procedure, we are ready to clean the wound. So, let’s

wash our hands and put-on sterile gloves and proceed to clean the wound. Do this by removing a

gauze pad from the wrapping, wet the gauze with the normal saline or whatever the doctor order

and carefully clean any blood or other bodily fluids from the wound. When your done cleaning

the wound to your best ability, you want to let the wound fully air dry before placing the new

dressing and wash your hands and put a new pair of sterile gloves on. If you don’t let the wound

dry it’s a possibility that it can cause more bacterial growth. Once the wound is dry, apply the

antibiotic ointment then apply a new non-stick pad to the wound plus any extra gauze it may

need for cushioning. After it is covered, gently secure with wound tape or with a wrap,

depending on where the wound is located. When using tape, you want to apply it to the edges

and when using a wrap, wrap it around the bandage so its firm but comfortable and not to tight.

Finally, you want to label the dressing with the date, time, and your initials. Ensure safe

environment for the patient, return the bed to lowest position with brakes locked and appropriate

side rails up, with call light within reach. Dispose of soiled supplies and biohazard bag. Finally,

you want to thoroughly wash your hands. And now you are done!

Conclusion

That is how you change a wound care dressing. Dressings should be changed at least

twice a day or whenever blood has soaked through the bandage. You should also contact the

physician if there is anything unusual with the wound such as large amounts of blood, foul smell,

fevers, chills, more pain or if the skin is warm to touch.

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Reference

Techniques for aseptic dressing and procedures. (2015). PubMed Central (PMC).

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4579997/