Mixing and matching dressing products.

The reality of wound management in clinical practice leaves a lot to be desired in relation to dressing selection and use. Maureen Benbow highlights some of the problems currently being encountered in relation to good wound management practice and illustrates good practice with a particularly difficult case study. A basic understanding of patient assessment, wound assessment, dressing properties and their appropriateness at different stages of healing and for differing clinical appearances is essential to achieving success in wound and patient management. The author uses an unusual case study to illustrate the thinking and informed decision-making behind the choice of dressings used in combination. The issues to be addressed in relation to the management of wounds generally reflect the professional accountability of nurses and how they try to avoid harming the patient, the cost implications of dressings, their efficacy and clinical effectiveness and how practice can be improved.