2010 Award Finalist

The Central East Community Care Access Centre Advanced Wound Care Program

Category - Improving Efficiency

The Problem

The Central East Community Care Access Centre (CECCAC) wanted to find a way to meet a growing demand for wound care, and a way to manage the associated costs. In 2008/09, the CECCAC provided care to over 5,000 wound care clients accounting for approximately 43 percent of home care nursing visits, and totalling over 50 percent of the organization's in-home nursing and medical supply costs. An examination of the average cost of treating wounds revealed that a traditional wound care approach with nursing visits extending up to a year with daily dressing changes for at least half of the time can cost up to $16,000 per client.

The Innovation

The CECCAC initiated a pilot project introducing new wound care protocols and advanced wound care products to improve the quality of life of patients and significantly reduce client care costs. Prior to the pilot, the majority of wounds at the CECCAC were treated with dry gauze dressings. Clinical evidence has demonstrated that dry gauze dressings and antiseptics are no longer considered best practice wound management. In fact, advanced moist-wound healing methods provide the necessary environment to promote better healing. Wounds without these advanced dressings have a significantly greater chance of infection, increased pain levels, longer healing times, and higher treatment costs. The evidence-based pilot project was developed in partnership with Nursing Practice Solutions and Smith and Nephew Healthcare Ltd. It focused on reducing the frequency of nursing visits and utilizing advanced wound care products, thus reducing the frequency of dressing changes.

The Results

The results bore out the faith that had been shown in the new protocols. The new advanced wound care program required an initial investment in advanced dressings and wound care products; however, these costs were offset by savings in other areas, such as nursing visits and shorter healing times, which are the largest cost drivers. The implementation of the new protocols and advanced dressings dramatically reduced nursing visits and the adherence to new protocols improved healing times and overall shortened length of stay.

Next Steps

The CECCAC is determined to build on the success of the pilot project. Several areas for improvement were identified during the course of the pilot, and these will be a priority going forward. A Wound Care Committee has been established to build leadership, foster networking, and build capacity through continuing education with standardization of care throughout the CECCAC. Wound care management programs have been established across all the branches of the CECCAC, and there is a focus on collaborating with hospital partners to build alignment in wound care management practices.