SURGICAL/CRITICAL CARE
Photo credit: Supak |
stock.adobe.com Trends and treatments in
healing patients and post-COVID profits. by Brenda Silva
ust as many of the wounds inflicted upon the health- care industry by COVID-19 are still slow to heal, so are the wounds of many patients in hospitals and healthcare facilities throughout the country. One common factor affecting the healing process of both is the current shortage of healthcare personnel, which is evidenced by a critical reduction in healthcare staff—many of whom chose to leave the healthcare profession post-COVID, which resulted in understaffed facilities and directly impacted patient care. Along with a decrease in qualified and available healthcare staff,
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another area that requires immediate attention is the increase in wound- and skin-related infections. Industry professionals assert that it is not enough to have innovative products that are designed to increase healing and prevent further infections. Hospitals and healthcare facilities must also educate and train existing personnel in wound-treatment protocols in order to effectively stop the bleeding of patients and profits in the future.
Slow-release option for slow healing For every patient and every wound, there exists a wide range of factors that determine the time it takes for a wound and the surrounding skin to heal completely, such as a patient’s age and overall health status. In addition, the time to optimal wound healing is also affected by the type of wound a patient has and
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how/where it originated (infection, accident, surgery, etc.). As such, many wound care and skin care companies are looking to create dressings that are designed to expedite the skin- and wound-healing process, with many products also serving as cost-effective options for the patient, as well as the hospital or healthcare facility. At Medline Industries, Greg Olk, senior director of product management, Advanced Wound Care, pointed out one of the factors that contribute to slow wound healing, and detailed a solution to overcome the challenge faced by patients and physicians.
“More than 90% of chronic wounds contain
biofilm, which are bacterial structures physically attached to a surface and characterized by tol- erance to antibiotics and biocides. Biofilm stalls wound healing and contributes to chronicity. It is also very difficult to remove because it firmly adheres to surrounding tissue and is highly tolerant to antibiotics. Recent evidence suggests that ‘slow-release’ iodine is more effective on biofilm than many standard antimicrobials, such as silver and Polyhexamethylene Biguanide (PHMB),” Olk said. He continued, “Slow-release iodine dressings release iodine
Greg Olk
in a slow, controlled manner over a three-day period to sustain antibacterial activity and reduce cytotoxicity. Perhaps more
wound and skin care Products, personnel, and protocols remain key for
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