I have a patient who had a failed mesh placement and a panniculectomy and who has developed at least three separate fistulas with a very large amount of output (3-4 L/24 hrs). Any suggestions? I am using an Eakin wound management pouch hooked up to wall suction.
New Year’s Resolution
- Wed, 1/6/10 - 6:54pm
- 1 Comments
- 1231 reads
I don’t have a Kindle or own a device that features a pleasant-sounding person giving me directions from Point A to Point B. Sometimes, getting lost leads to new and unexpected things in life. My professional career into wound, ostomy and continence care began because I had a supervisor who “ordered” me into the specialty when a colleague retired. I was lost at first but gained direction through a variety of street signs in the form of journals, conferences, and mentors. These were my professional Garmin. I laugh about it now because I while I thought that I was misdirected, in the course of the journey, I found I was on the right path after all!
This “road taken” has been fun and insightful. To me, the science of this distinctive area of healthcare is also one of the most robust and advanced; despite the fact that many therapies and interventions have only “C Level” (eg, expert opinion) evidence, care management has been shaped by the expertise of many disciplines. Why do I say this? Few specialties are truly interdisciplinary. The synergy created by Nutrition, Physical Therapy, Nursing, and Medicine enhances patient outcomes. This year, the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care has focused on adding the most important piece to synergy — the patient. It has been the one missing link. Having patients as active members of this professional organization can only make us better providers, researchers and mentors to others entering the specialty.
Around this time of year, New Year’s resolutions abound and I have started thinking about mine. I thought about the need to “get lost” again. This time, I will adopt more technology, and enjoy (I hope) my journey. I instinctively know it is the right path. I may get a GPS for my car. I might get a Kindle. But to continue the interdisciplinary sharing and the “give and take” discussions, I need to join Facebook and Twitter. I didn’t initially like the path into wound, ostomy and continence and I may find this road a bit rocky, too. But I know acting on my 2010 resolution will be filled with adventure!
Thank you Cathy for sharing your New Years Resolutions. New and ever changing technological advances have expanded my world. It seems like only yesterday: I called a colleague because I didn't know how to open the attachment on an email. That was 1997. Since then, technology has enabled me to do my work more quickly and efficiently and I wonder how I functioned without it.
The multidisciplinary and global nature of wound care has forced me to expand my nursing practice into the great "beyond", working with wound care professionals around the world. My journey has included so many special people who influenced my career path. One special mentor, the late Elizabeth Purcell, BSN, ET, was one of the most influential. She had no idea I coveted her postition as an "ET" which was the "fork in the road" and led me down the WOCN path. And of course: special thanks to Mary Brennan who taught me (among other things) how to open my email attachment.
I hope to continue to learn from each and every one of my wound care colleagues. You teach me to challenge my beliefs and to keep an open mind. Anything is possible!
Diane Maydick, RN, MSN, ACNS-BC, CWOCN
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