Abstract
PURPOSE: To enhance the learner's competence in using a pressure ulcer prevention program and tailoring it to the individual needs of spinal cord injury patients.
TARGET AUDIENCE: This continuing education activity is intended for physicians and nurses with an interest in skin and wound care.
OBJECTIVES: After participating in this education activity, the participant should be better able to:
1. Counsel patients with spinal cord injuries on the Lifestyle Redesign Pressure Ulcer Prevention Program (LR-PUP) and explain the advantages in tailoring its features to the individual.
2. Apply the principles of the LR-PUP to patient care.
ABSTRACT:
OBJECTIVE: The objectives of the study were to sensitize practitioners working with individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) to the complex life circumstances that are implicated in the development of pressure ulcers (PrUs) and to document the ways that interventions can be adapted to target individual needs.
METHODS: This study was a content analysis of weekly fidelity/quality control meetings that were undertaken as part of a lifestyle intervention for PrU prevention in community-dwelling adults with SCI.
RESULTS: Four types of lifestyle-relevant challenges to ulcer prevention were identified: risk-elevating life circumstances, communication difficulties, equipment problems, and individual personality issues. Intervention flexibility was achieved by changing the order of treatment modules, altering the intervention content or delivery approach, or going beyond the stipulated content.
CONCLUSION: Attention to recurrent types of individual needs, along with explicit strategies for tailoring interventions published in a manual, has the potential to enhance PrU prevention efforts for adults with SCI.