Myth # 1 – Wound Certification is only for “specialists”
Certification is important for any healthcare professional who is involved in the care of patients with various types of wounds, not just those who specialize in treating complicated wounds.
In current practice, no matter which area you practice in, you are likely to come in contact with patients who have wounds. Increasingly, healthcare professionals are being held to a higher standard of wound care management. Old methods of wound care management have proven to be detrimental to wound healing and can result in infection and delayed wound healing.
Treatment of wounds, whether they are complicated or uncomplicated, should adhere to evidence-based wound management principles. New treatment modalities have been proven to decrease the risk of infection and promote faster wound healing with less complications and less pain for the patient. This should be the goal of all who practice wound care, whether it is your specialty or not.
Health care professionals are increasingly being held accountable for their actions in treating wounds. Simple wounds can rapidly become complicated wounds if not treated adequately, leading to liability issues for the healthcare professional and the facility they are affiliated with. When simple acute wounds develop into complicated chronic wounds, the patient endures increased pain and morbidity. As well, complicated wounds lead to increased costs in an already strained healthcare system.
Due to the rapid explosion in information that has taken place in the wound care milieu over the past several years, many healthcare professionals do not have the most current, up-to-date information in wound care management, information that is based on the best research evidence. Obtaining wound care certification helps to ensure that healthcare practices are consistent with national standards. Healthcare professionals seek wound care certification as a way to validate their knowledge, experience, and competency. Hospitals and other health care organizations can benefit from wound certification as an indicator that their staff provide quality care, and can use this fact as a way to differentiate themselves from others in today’s competitive market.
Woundeducators.com offers comprehensive online courses to educate professionals with varying levels of clinical experience, background, and education, and prepares them to take and pass the wound care certification examination. Our online program makes it convenient and affordable for any professional who is involved in wound care to learn the new standards of evidence based wound management.
If you would like more information on how our online wound management program can help you achieve certification in wound care, please visit woundeducators.com. We owe it to our patients and ourselves to be the best that we can be.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I work in a small rural facility in Canada. We depend highly on our homecare nurses to advise us on wound care, but I think there should be someone certified in wound care in every facility on every floor. We DO owe it to our patients! Great article.
Thanks for your comment Jennifer. I believe we will get there! The more we can educate health care professionals, and the more affordable we can make wound care education and certification, the sooner our patients will receive the care that they deserve.
I am so excited to become certified in wound care. The field is growing so rapidly and supervisors are finally beginning to recognize the need to support certification. I work in a long term care facility and we are in desperate need for certified wound specialist on every unit.
I am very happy to be a wound care specialist here in puerto rico. But on this island we are not recognized like a specialist. I think that at all hospitals of Puerto Rico need a wound specialist. We are having every day more patients with ulcers and infected wounds.
I have been an EMT, am currently a Fire Chief and First Responder. I also have been married for over thirty years to a parapligic and have been dealing with decubitis ulcers for several years. I have tried and done all types of wound care for her from daily dressing changes of wet to dry, debridement, and changing wound vac dressings. Currantly she has four we have been dealing with due to recovering from a femur fracture and lack of proper presure relieving cusion and bed. We have a home health care come in once a week to monitor and change the dressings and I change them the rest of the week, I have had to train the RN’S on several occasions on proper proceedures of the wound vac.
The question I have would it be benificial to me to become wound care certified.
I do not have a nursing degree, however I do have an AA in Sociology.
Hi William,
“Knowledge is power” and any knowledge that you obtain can only help you in your life and career. We have several EMT students. Some are taking the wound management course for educational purposes only, and some wish to become certified.
If you choose certification, please visit the AAWM website at http://www.aawm.org for certification requirements, test dates and fees. Good luck!
Can you tell me why the requirements were changed in order to become certified. I have an ADN degree and am wondering why you have to have a BSN to become certified. I’m sure like me there are a lot of ADN nurses out there that have had the wound care experiance and would like to become a CWS.
Hello Jamie,
Wound certification is available for you even if you do not have a BSN. As long as you have 3 years of clinical experience you are eligible to sit for the Certified Wound Care Associate certification (CWCA). I recommend that you take the Basic Wound Management Training Course to help you prepare for the CWCA certification examination.
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