Joanna qualified as an RGN in 1994 and worked on a liver unit where her interest in tissue viability (TV) began. She became a Tissue Viability Link Nurse, a role that she carried on into her job as an Intensive Care Nurse. Joanna completed a BSc (Hons) in nursing and gained a critical care outreach and acute pain management post where she further expanded her knowledge and skills working with a variety of patient groups and the multidisciplinary team in a large university hospital.

She became a Tissue Viability specialist nurse in 2006 and, subsequently the Lead Tissue Viability Specialist Nurse job in 2008. Joanna then went on to complete an MSc in Wound Healing and Tissue Repair from the University of Cardiff in 2018 and also became a Tissue Viability Society trustee. Since 2020 she has been the senior lecturer for Tissue Viability at Birmingham City University. Her particular interests are in prevention and management of pressure ulcers and surgical site infection.

Workshop at The Society of Tissue Viability 2023 Conference

Different debriding techniques – practical workshop

Objectives

After attending this session, persons will be able to:

• Describe techniques for debriding wounds
• Demonstrate with some case studies the benefits of debriding a wound
• Understand the contraindications to some debridement methods

Abstract

Debridement techniques have been reported as far back as 2000 BC, and have developed considerably over the years, with some very complex methods used in clinical practice today.

Patients today have increasingly complex needs. The importance of debriding a wound to remove devitalised tissue and disrupt biofilms to encourage wound healing and improve outcomes cannot be overstated.

During the workshop there will be an opportunity to try out some of the techniques discussed on improvised models.

This session is an introduction and will not give you the necessary competence to use all debridement techniques.