Scales for Assessment of Pressure Ulcer Healing
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Date
2010-04-01
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Thailand Nursing and Midwifery Council
Abstract
Accurate documentation on pressure ulcer healing is very significance because it can demonstrate the effectiveness of care. However, some problems of pressure ulcer healing records were found from the literature reviews and in clinical practices at Nopparatrajathanee hospital. These problems included incomplete, discontinuous, and inaccuracy. Utilization of appropriate instruments to monitor wound progress or wound healing is strongly recommended. This article is aimed to review the instruments used for pressure ulcer assessment. It was found that the first three instruments which most frequently used in the clinical practice were Pressure Ulcer Status Tool (PUSH Tool 3.0), Pressure Sore Status Tool (PSST) and Sessing Scale. The comparison was made among these three instruments in term of validity, reliability and feasibility. The result revealed that the Pressure ulcer Status Tool (PUSH Tool 3.0) is more reliable and feasible to use in clinical practice. It provides more details in determining the characteristics of pressure ulcers in many dimensions including size, depth, sign of infection, and the progression which reflect healing. While the other instrument had less details and is very complex to use by the non-specialist clinicians. In conclusion, PUSH Tool 3.0 was selected as a scale for assessment of pressure ulcer healing and progression at Nopparatrajathanee hospital. A plan to conduct a training program for nurses and other related health care providers as well as a plan to evaluate the effectiveness of this scale is recommended in further study.
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Thai Journal of Nursing Council; Vol.24 No.3 July-September 2009; 20-30