Surgical wound dehiscence develops when the edges of a surgical incision separate along the suture line due to infection or suboptimal healing, leading to an open wound. Surgical wound dehiscence can have a significant impact on the patient’s quality of life, increases the demands on healthcare professionals’ time and is costly to the health economy. Over 50% of patients with surgical wound dehiscence are managed in the community and treating these types of wounds is challenging. General practice nurses (GPNs) need to be aware of those patients that are more likely to present with surgical wound dehiscence and take a preventative approach, as well as understanding the principles of best practice for assessment and management when caring for this group of patients.
Over the past five years, NHS commissioners have started to practise outcomes-based commissioning. Many of the new provider-led models of care heralded in the Five Year Forward View (NHS England, 2014) build on the concept of ‘accountable care organisations’ (ACOs). The ACO model is predicated on payment for outcomes.
While still in its infancy, our understanding of outcomes that matter most to people and families is growing — and those outcomes may be different to the clinical biomarkers we have traditionally measured.
Accounting for person-centred outcomes would fundamentally change conversations with patients and the focus of clinical practice, because we would worry less about the numbers and more about supporting people to live full, productive lives. Let’s imagine how that might work.