According to the American Journal of Nursing, pressure ulcers are less likely when nurses have more time to focus directly on patient care. As part of a retrospective analysis of the National Pressure Ulcer Long-Term Study (NPULS), researchers examined data from 1,376 residents of 82 long-term care facilities. ¹
In this study, findings showed that residents of skilled nursing facilities at risk for pressure ulcers who received more direct care time were “strongly associated with better outcomes.” Furthermore, the results indicated that more nurse care time per resident per day was associated with fewer pressure ulcers, among other ailments.
While it is crucial that further research be conducted, these findings show the importance of improved nurse staffing in these residences.
At WoundRounds, we understand that staff members, especially wound care nurses, spend a significant amount of time gathering data. This can be a frustrating and time consuming process which is why we believe the right tools can boost nurses’ productivity.
Our Point-of-Care wound care management solution provides the following to reduce such paperwork and allot more patient care time throughout your day:
- WoundRounds wound management software, eliminates the need for hand written wound charting. Patient information is electronically documented and uploaded to the Internet.
- The patient’s wound assessment is available via the web to administrators and members of the care team. Staff no longer need to search through paper files for past notes when completing required wound care documentation and evaluating the patient.
- Nurses can simply print out reports as needed. This centrally organized system leads to less error, peace of mind and a savings of 8-10 hours a week of nurse time. ²
¹Horn, Susan D. PhD. “RN Staffing Time and Outcomes of Long-Stay Nursing Home Residents: Pressure ulcers and other adverse outcomes are less likely as RNs spend more time on direct patient care.” AJN, American Journal of Nursing 105.11 (2005): 58-70. Web.
²Ostomy Wound Management, 2012, 58(3): 46-51
