Page 44 - Psychology of Wounds and Wound Care in Clinical Practice ( PDFDrive )

Implications for Practice 17

tion and practical help from health professionals can result in
patients using poor management strategies that could harm
their wound, aggravate problems such as bleeding and impair
healing (Lo et al. 2008 ). In contrast, where recovery is slow,
patients may experience frustration at the lack of progress
and find it difficult to accept the assurances of the clinician
that progress is being made. In such cases photography may
provide an easy and effective method of offering accurate
feedback to a patient during treatment: weekly photos can
provide a concrete record of progress which allows the heal-
ing process to be more easily recognized by the patient. This
might also be useful in cases where the wound is located in a
site not easily accessible to the patient (e.g. pressure ulcers)
meaning that they are totally dependent on others for infor-
mation about progress with healing (Spilsbury et al. 2007 ).
Acknowledging and managing patient distress is also very
important. Teaching a simple relaxation technique such as
controlled breathing or guided imagery may help patients
cope with stressful situations such as dressing change.
Counselling or professional intervention may be indicated
where patient distress has become severe, in particular where
depression or anxiety has become significant. Alternatively
patients may be supported to find their own coping mecha-
nisms by finding new ways to deal with their situation. For
example for patients whose customary leisure pursuits are no
longer possible for practical reasons, encouraging them to
find new interests may be one way of helping them to take an
active approach to coping with their change in health status
and identity. Furthermore engaging in enjoyable activities
will support positive wellbeing.
Finally the importance of providing patients with a support
network should not be neglected. Encouraging patients to
maintain social activities and interactions with family and
friends is obviously important. Furthermore, the clinician
could focus on involving the family in the treatment where this
is possible or desirable (Vermeiden et al. 2009 ). Finally the
advantages of establishing support groups for patients and
their carers have already been discussed in this chapter: not
only do such groups enables the sharing of experiences and