Creating more wound experts
Published on: Saturday, August 20, 2016
Kota Kinabalu: The Health Department plans to expand the number of wound care professionals out there, starting with clinics, pharmacies to caregivers at home. Its Director Dr Christina Rundi wants such skills disseminated to the wider community, including pharmacies, to ensure wound dressing quality remains even after patients have been discharged from hospitals. "The standard of wound dressing must be kept when patients have been discharged from hospital to ensure the injury heals faster.
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"In order to achieve that, we have to organise training and identify those who should be trained with such abilities. This is the type of future the department wants in terms of wound care," she said after the launching of the North Borneo Wound Conference, here, Friday. Dr Rundi indicated that quality wound dressing supplies may not be available in clinics and pharmacies out there but that these groups are important to ensure the quality of wound dressing and its supplies are kept. She said caregivers should also be trained to ensure they have the skills to advise patients with wounds on the type of dressing needed for their wounds and buy them from pharmacies which are well versed on the area and adequately supplied to ensure wounds would not be infected.
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Malaysian Society of Wound Care Professionals President Dr Harikrishna Nair said 50 per cent of patients would end up in pharmacies to buy their wound dressing supplies. At present, he said he had set up a portal where pharmacies can write to him and share photos of wounds so he would be able to advise them on the types of supplies needed or whether their customers should consult doctors at hospitals.
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"Wound dressing should be accessible to all and we need to move quickly because if they go untreated it will get infected and people can die from infected wounds," he said. According to him, diabetic ulcers and pressure wounds are types of wounds that could cause severe complications if not treated properly. Dr Harikrishna, who is also the State adviser for wound care, cited Christopher Reeve, the man who acted as Superman who died of pressure wounds after falling from a horse. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said wounds have become a big burden for countries with the cost of healing ailments skyrocketing. He said this has indirectly affected economies. "Diabetes Mellitus also has increased in epic proportions and currently in Malaysia, 20 per cent of the population above 18 years suffer from the systemic disease, according to the National Health and Morbidity Survey 3."About a quarter of these diabetics end up with foot complications that involve wounds. But 85 per cent of these diabetic foot ulcers can be prevented if food, sugar control and exercise are advocated to patients," he said. His speech was read by Special Tasks Minister Datuk Teo Chee Kang during the opening of the North Borneo Wound Conference 2016. Musa said the same goes to pressure ulcers or sores that make patients unable to move without any aid. "It is noted that a pressure injury of Grade 3 requires around US$70,000 (approximately RM281,025.50) to treat in the United States. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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