Closing the Gap Between Evidence and Action: how Outcome Measurement Informs the Implementation of Evidence-based Wound Care Practice in Home Care
McIsaac, C.
Wounds a Compendium of Clinical Research and Practice 19(11): 299-309
2007
ISSN/ISBN: 1044-7946 PMID: 25942593 Document Number: 607713
Measured outcomes can help assure successful implementation of evidence-based wound care programs by informing patients, professionals, and payors that a health care system is both efficient and effective. Illustrate how clinical and economic outcome measurement was important to ensure sustainability of standardized evidence-based wound care programs implemented in Canadian community care. Client assessments, dressing change frequency, wound healing, and economic outcomes were measured on 16,079 Canadian home care clients, including 8089 with a total of 11,160 chronic or acute wounds during standardized evidence-based protocol implementation that involved education, knowledge transfer, strategic planning, management accountability/receptivity, communication, and either prospective client assessment-based data or retrospective chart audit data to measure outcomes. Results from 3 regions illustrate how evidence-based protocol use decreased length of service, dressing change frequency, wound care costs, and wound closure time. Client and staff empowerment and management involvement were among key factors for success. Objectively measuring and reporting outcomes provided a concrete context for increasing organizational efforts to improve wound care practices and provided a solid foundation for sustained evidence-based protocol usage as it allowed agencies to track improvement in health and economic outcomes.