Simple wound care facilitates full healing in post-earthquake Haiti

The author provides an insight into the basic health care needs of two spinal cord injury patients who were cared for in a specially set up 25-bedded spinal cord injury unit in Haiti. While focusing on their extreme wound care requirements, the author highlights the need for adequate fluid, nutrition, hygiene and aseptic technique. Both patients were victims of the January 2010 earthquake in Port au Prince, Haiti. The author describes the basic wound care strategy for a patient with a category IV sacral pressure ulcer and another with a broken down thoracic spine surgical wound with visible metal work. This article describes how simple wound care effected the complete healing of large sacral pressure ulcers and broken down spinal surgical wounds without the need for further surgical intervention

Keywords : Adult,complications,Disasters,Earthquakes,education,etiology,Female,Haiti,Humans,Hygiene,injuries,International Educational Exchange,Malnutrition,methods,nursing,Nursing Assessment,Nursing Staff,Hospital,Patient Care Planning,Practice Guidelines as Topic,Pressure,Pressure Ulcer,prevention & control,Sacrococcygeal Region,Skin Care,Spinal Cord,Spinal Cord Injuries,Spine,surgery,Surgical Wound Dehiscence,Wound Healing,, Wound,Care,Facilitates,Full,Healing, electronic nerve stimulator

Date of Publication : 2011 Jan

Authors : Stephenson FJ;

Organisation : Haiti Hospital Appeal, Cap Haitien, Haiti. fistephenson@gmail.com

Journal of Publication : J Wound Care

Pubmed Link : https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21278634

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