COVID-19 proning teams benefit from wound care specialist nurse

(HealthDay)—The inclusion of a certified wound and skin care nurse on a multiprofessional prone-positioning team significantly reduces the odds of pressure injuries developing in patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19, according to a study published in the January issue of the American Journal of Critical Care.

Connie Johnson, R.N., from Penn Medicine Princeton Health in Plainsboro, New Jersey, and colleagues evaluated the association between including a certified wound and skin care nurse on a multiprofessional pronation team and the prevention of pressure injuries in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-infected patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. The analysis included 130 patients (40 percent treated by a team that included a certified wound and skin care nurse) hospitalized with COVID-19 between Feb. 1 and Aug. 30, 2020.

The researchers found that fewer patients in the intervention group had pressure injuries develop (8 percent versus 60 percent in the control group). Patients in the intervention group had a 97 percent lower risk for a pressure injury developing than patients in the comparison group (adjusted odds ratio, 0.03).

"The results of our study underscore the value of having clinicians with specialized expertise work together to improve patient outcomes and could redefine the strategies used to prevent pressure injuries in this patient population," a coauthor said in a statement.

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