Happy New Year! Traditionally, at the start of a new year people say "in with the new, and out with the old." For us, "in with the new" means many changes. We have redesigned the journal from front to back to reflect the dynamic state of skin and wound healing, including a new perfect binding. Critically, we have also increased the number of journal pages. This will enable us to bring you more feature articles and timely content in print. Further, beginning with this issue, we will now include two CE/CME articles with each issue whenever possible. Our hope is that the first article will address an important "core curriculum" topic, and the second article will reflect a hot topic in wound care. In this issue, you will note this dynamic reflected in our CE/CMEs on nail disease and aging skin.
Last year, the journal saw an increase in Letters to the Editor. This is very exciting for us! We thank our readers for your feedback. We have heard you and implemented as many of your suggestions as possible. For example, we received positive feedback about our dedicated pressure injury issue and controversial survey. Because of this, the March issue will become an annual branded issue focusing on pressure injuries. Keep an eye out for our second annual March issue, and continue to contact us at mailto:[email protected].
We are not the only organization embracing the new this year. The National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel has changed their name to the National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel (NPIAP)! The new name reflects the corrected terminology aimed at reducing misdiagnosis of this important condition. We look forward to the continued leadership of the NPIAP, and hope they accept our sincerest congratulations!
This year, practitioners will also benefit from the newly released Prevention and Treatment of Pressure Ulcers/Injuries: Clinical Practice Guideline. This third edition is the result of coordinated collaboration by the Guideline Governance Group. Stakeholders around the world reviewed drafts of the guideline and provided input. The international guideline has 115 recommendations (7 of which are Level A evidence) and 61 good practice statements. Research needs are identified, and a new section on quality indicators is included. This is a good time to review highlights of implementation science as you prepare to incorporate the third edition into your practice. For more information, visit http://internationalguideline.com.
Finally, we are delighted to announce that Advances has entered into a relationship with the World Council of Enterostomal Therapists (WCET). Look for articles throughout the year that will come from the WCET Journal. We are glad that this relationship will provide our readers even more international data and critical content in this area of wound care.
A happy and healthy 2020 to all!
Elizabeth A. Ayello, PhD, MS, BSN, RN, CWON, ETN, MAPWCA, FAAN
R. Gary Sibbald, MD, DSc (Hons), MEd, BSc, FRCPC (Med Derm), FAAD, MAPWCA, JM