Patient : The doctor walked in and ripped off my dressing at 04am because he wanted to see my wound. He said that he will be back to change the dressing but has not returned.
Patient :The nurse came into my room and said Ms. Lopez, I will change your dressing. So she ripped off my dressing. I cried very hard like a baby.
Have you or your love ever experienced this?.Well you don’t have to .
DRESSING CHANGE 101.
(1 )Wash your hands.
(2) Dry your hands.
(3) Put on your gloves.
(4).Make patient comfortable and wound easily accessible.
(5) You should use one hand to press down gently on the dressing, slowly and carefully lift one corner of the dressing with the other hand,slowly and consistently until it is no longer attached to the skin and all the corners of the dressing are free. Then take out the dressing cover and throw it into the biohazard bag.
(6) Irrigate the wound with sterile saline for easy removal of the dressing inside the wound. Then gently remove the dressing. Clean the inside of the wound as ordered by the doctor .Use the appropriate wound cleanser. Apply new dressing as ordered by the doctor or the wound care specialist. If the dressing change might be painful medicate patient with pain medication 30minutes before the dressing change. Be compassionate, and advocate for your patient.
Nurses You Move Me 