AAWC Update

Giving thanks this holiday season

The AAWC send a warm holiday thank you to members, board members, volunteers, organizational partners, corporate sponsors, and staff for a prosperous 2016. We are proud of our accomplishments.

• The AAWC Board of Directors prepared a Position Statement on the proposed National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP) Pressure Ulcer Staging System revisions. The AAWC BOD recommends forestalling the implementation of the proposed NPUAP staging system. A new classification of identifying pressure-related tissue damage must be developed based on current global evidence. The AAWC is working with other concerned key stakeholders on this issue. 
• The Association presented the second AAWC Clinical Practice Track at SAWC Spring 2016. The track was an astounding success; 3 of the top rated SAWC Spring sessions were AAWC sessions. Subsequently, the “AAWC Clinical Practice Track” was renamed to “AAWC Podium to Practice Track” to better highlight the intention of this unprecedented group of quality sessions. Sessions are planned for the SAWC Spring 2017 in San Diego, CA, April 5–9, 2017. 
• The Association continued its work as the host association, with the Wound Healing Society as co-host, on the Wound-care Experts/FDA – Clinical Endpoints Project (WEF-CEP). WEF-CEP’s mission is to define scientifically rigorous endpoints for wound healing for presentation to the United States Food and Drug Administration, which will ultimately help with drug and device approvals to benefit the patients we serve.
• The Association addressed several health care public policy concerns with various agencies and other entities, while providing important information to members in the Alerts section of the AAWC website.
• The Association provided opportunities and funding for members to volunteer overseas to teach wound care through the AAWC Global Volunteers Program.
• The Association conducted a successful Call for Nominations to the 2017 Board of Directors. Elections take place January 12 through February 12.
• The Association launched a state-of-the-art AAWC website with mobile versions for smartphones and tablets.
• The Association expanded the AAWC Speakers Bureau.
• The Association continued to develop the AAWC Career Center, available on the AAWC website.
• The Association advanced the Educate for the Generalist (ETG) program, including a special ETG section on the AAWC website, which is open to the public. Additionally, a presentation template on peripheral arterial disease was developed for members’ use.
• The Association rolled-out the new Perks and Pearls program, where a clinical practice pearl is coupled with a membership benefit (or “perk”). Look for these alerts on AAWC’s Facebook and LinkedIn pages. Pearls will be archived on the AAWC website, and members are welcome to submit. See the website under “Programs” for more information and be spotlighted for your contribution.
• The Association released newest educational brochure on infection prevention, the sixth in a series of informative pamphlets that can be downloaded for free from the “Professional Resources” section or purchased in quantities of 100 from the AAWC online store.

For the new year, AAWC intends to:

•  finalize the recommended endpoints for submission to the FDA via the WEF-CEP initiative;
• alert members to healthcare public policy issues;
• develop evidence-based wound infection and diabetic foot guidelines;
• continue the international consolidation of clinical guidelines among societies;
• produce additional educational brochure(s);
• pursue the feasibility of regional meetings for AAWC members; and
• develop a clinical research education portal on the AAWC website.

More exciting initiatives, are under development and will be announced soon.

SAWC Fall Nursing and Physician Scholarship Winners

Through a partnership with SAWC Spring and SAWC Fall, the AAWC has the honor of selecting the AAWC member winners of the SAWC Nursing and Physician Scholarships. The scholarships provide 1 nurse and 1 physician with complimentary conference registration to each conference (a $500 value) and recognition during SAWC’s Scholarship Ceremony. We congratulate the SAWC Fall Scholarship winners: April Qualley, NP-C, CWON-AP (nursing); and Brock Liden, DPM (physician). 

About AAWC 

AAWC is the largest not-for-profit membership organization in the United States dedicated to interprofessional wound healing and tissue preservation. AAWC’s mission is to advance the care of people with and at risk for wounds. The Association’s focus is on education, public policy, and the application of evidence-based wound care practice. AAWC offers membership and associated benefits to everyone involved in wound care, including clinicians and other healthcare professionals, patients, lay-caregivers, clinics/facilities, corporations, students, retirees, and advocates. Learn more about AAWC benefits, activities and programs, and/or join at www.aawconline.org

This article was not subject to the Ostomy Wound Management peer-review process.