A colleague forwarded me this video with Dr. Dale Bratzler of the Oklahoma Foundation for Medical Quality as he discusses the prevalence of pressure ulcers amongst patients in nursing homes and hospitals in the state. Unfortunately, Oklahoma is one of the top five worst states in terms of frequency of development of pressure ulcers.

Dr. Bratzler suggests that the best method of prevention is to educate ‘front line workers’– those who typically provide the most hands-on patient care as to what can be done to from a prevention standpoint and how identify the wounds in their early stages before they become particularly problematic.

I couldn’t agree more. In my experience by the time a pressure ulcer (similarly called: bed sore, decubitus ulcer or pressure sore) has developed, it is really a display of a complete breakdown in patient care at the entire facility. In the days and weeks a stage 3 or 4 pressure ulcer develops, it literally means that shaft-after-shift of nurses or aides failed to do their job.

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