Patient Experience Improvement and Increased Administrative Freedom with an Innovative Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Device.

Overview of Clinical Challenge: Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is considered to be an effective wound treatment, yet research has repeatedly highlighted a need for improvement. Research has shown that patients feel NPWT has a positive impact on their wound, however, patients also reported challenges such as noise issues, and reduced mobility1. Clinical and support staff have been burdened with daily administrative distractions to micromanage pump usage, pump reprocessing and reliable pump inventory.

The previous NPWT system was determined to be noisy, hinder patient mobility, and required additional daily documentation outside of the facility charting system as required by the previous vendor. Par level maintenance of the previous NPWT device was also outside of facility processes and reliability concerns were experienced. Methods:An innovative negative pressure wound therapy system that met the standard of care, as defined by EWMA, by maintaining set pressure at the wound site2 was evaluated.

This innovative system exceeded our expectations for clinical performance3, reliability and significantly reduced the burden of NPWT device documentation for billing and management.

Outcomes:Case series has expanded to seven patients exhibiting a range of challenging wounds included necrotizing fasciitis, CABG dehiscence with osteomyelitis and exposed bone, Fournier’s gangrene and pressure injuries. The innovative NPWT system was effectively applied to patients. Dressings were changed 2-3 times weekly and wound measurements were taken. The staff noted their overall satisfaction with the device and provided notable patient feedback.

Conclusions:The results from seven patients illustrated positive patient outcomes with an average wound reduction of 67%. Healing time on therapy averaged 3.6 weeks. Overall patient and staff satisfaction with the innovative device was high. Our staff has continued to state that they spend less time problem solving with the innovative NPWT system. The increased ease of use includes the eradication of daily documentation outside of the facility charting system. The innovative NPWT system has consistently maintained a budget reduction of 68% over the prior year (six figures) from the previous NPWT device. More importantly the high standards for patient outcomes remain consistent with the innovative NPWT device since the implementation.