Wounds International & Wound Care Insights: Beyond the Surface

In this Wounds International and Wound Care Insights podcast recorded at the LINK conference, Karen Ousey speaks with Harikrishna KR Nair about the concept of wound balance and its growing importance in modern care. The discussion explores how wound management must move beyond a narrow clinical focus to a more holistic model that considers the patient’s physical, psychological and social needs alongside clinical treatment. They highlight the role of multidisciplinary collaboration, patient empowerment and real-world factors such as lifestyle and environment in improving outcomes. The conversation also emphasises the need for education and global adoption to ensure wound balance becomes embedded in everyday practice.

In this Wounds International and Wound Care Insights podcast recorded at the LINK conference, Karen Ousey speaks with Harikrishna KR Nair about the evolving concept of wound balance. Drawing on decades of global clinical experience, Nair explains how wound care must move beyond treating the wound alone to a holistic, patient-centred model that integrates clinical care, patient wellbeing, environment and multidisciplinary collaboration. The discussion highlights the importance of psychological support, patient empowerment and real-world considerations such as lifestyle and socioeconomic factors. Together, they emphasise that improving outcomes requires education, shared responsibility and embedding wound balance into everyday practice worldwide. 

In this episode, Professor Karen Ousey and Astrid Probst M.Sc. Head of APN, NPL and PE Nursing Directorate discuss the transformation of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) in medical education, with a special focus on wound care training. The discussion highlights how these technologies accurately simulate real-world scenarios, offering immersive, hands-on experience that surpass traditional teaching methods. From reducing errors and boosting practitioner confidence to standardising best practices, VR and AR are reshaping the landscape of healthcare training. Astrid shares insights on how VR has empowered self-care, leading to improved health outcomes and patient engagement.

La professeure Karen Ousey et le Dr Emma Candas explorent l'importance de préserver l'intégrité cutanée chez les personnes âgées et expliquent comment Wound Balance peut optimiser les résultats.

Professor Karen Ousey and Dr Emma Candas explores the importance of maintaining skin integrity in an older population and explores how Wound Balance can optimise outcomes.  

Laura Swoboda reflects on her journey in caring for patients with wounds and ostomy, emphasizing the significance of her educational experiences. She discusses the science behind wound healing and its influence on her clinical practice. While optimizing patient health remains a priority, she explores strategies for collaborating with patients to achieve the best outcomes. The role of social determinants of health is examined and how they can be integrated into everyday practice.

Professor Karen Ousey and Professor Sebastain Probst explore the complexities of wound care in palliative care, addressing the challenges faced by patients, families, and healthcare professionals. A significant aspect of palliative care involves managing skin changes at the end of life. These changes can be distressing and difficult to address, requiring careful consideration and compassionate care.

In this podcast, Professor Karen Ousey and Hollie Robinson, the service lead for tissue viability, discuss the implementation of a virtual wound care formulary. Hollie delves into the challenges they faced during its implementation and how they successfully overcame them. The initiative has led to positive outcomes, including a streamlined formulary for all areas, a reduction in waste, and significant cost savings.

In this podcast, Professor Karen Ousey and Dr Leanne Atkin, Vascular Nurse Consultant, explore the inspiring journey of Leanne’s career. Leanne explores her professional and personal experiences that shaped her path from student nurse to an internationally recognised highly skilled nurse consultant. She offers valuable advice on following your heart to achieve your career goals and emphasizes the importance of finding a good mentor who can support you, listen to your ideas, and provide constructive criticism along the way.

In this podcast, Professor Karen Ousey and Dr. Gillian Rayner explore the importance of self-compassion in the high-stress area of healthcare. Often, healthcare professionals focus so intently on patient care that they neglect their own well-being. Gill discusses the concept of self-compassion and the challenges that healthcare professionals face in cultivating it. She provides practical strategies for incorporating self-compassion into daily routines and examines the role that organizations can play in supporting this essential aspect of healthcare.

In this podcast, Professor Karen Ousey and Susy Pramod, a tissue viability matron, delve into the management of malignant wounds. Susy shares insights from her daily work with these intricate wounds, emphasizing the critical importance of addressing both psychological and physical needs of patients and their families with compassion. She illustrates the significance of dedicating time to patients and families through examples from her own practice, as these wounds are often extensive and complicated. 

In this podcast, Karen Ousey and Joy Tickle, a tissue viability nurse consultant, explore Joy's remarkable career, from her early days as a student nurse to becoming a nurse consultant and her recent experiences as a patient. Joy talks passionately about her dedication to wound care and her 27-year journey as a tissue viability lead. She candidly reflects on her recent time as a patient, sharing her feelings of identity loss, guilt, and paranoia. Joy emphasizes the importance of appreciating the patient's perspective and the necessity of providing clear, easily comprehensible information to patients.