The utilisation of a negative pressure wound therapy clinical decision tree in an acute care setting tissue viability service

The aim of this case series and service evaluation was to demonstrate the beneficial clinical and economic outcomes of the utilisation of a negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) clinical decision tree within routine practice. A total of 16 retrospective anonymised complex wound case studies were referred to the tissue viability nursing (TVN) service. Patients received NPWT as inpatients, as per routine practice. Data was reported as an aggregated cohort, with further stratification by wound type. Descriptive statistics were utilised. The most prevalent wound type was dehisced surgical wounds (n=10; 62.5%) located on the abdomen (n=9; 56.25%). Risk of contamination (43.75%) and exudate management (43.75%) were the most common rationales for choosing traditional NPWT (tNPWT). Seven patients (43.75%) were discharged from hospital still requiring NPWT, with five (71.4%) having wound criteria suitable for single use NPWT (sNPWT). Using tNPWT and sNPWT alongside a clinical decision tree can assist in optimising NPWT delivery to patients within an acute care setting.