Introduction
The modern healthcare sector faces multiple problems that should be overcome to improve the result. The risk of developing pressure ulcers in patients with reduced mobility is one of these issues as it can precondition the development of multiple complications and become a significant barrier to the provision of care. For this reason, hospital-acquired pressure ulcers (HAPUs) are a problem of healthcare as they demand additional financing to treat complications (Bhattacharya & Mishra, 2015).
The quality of care suffers from the emergence of this health issue. That is why an intervention to overcome this problem may help to improve patients outcomes by eliminating the cause for the development of undesired states and reducing costs needed to guarantee appropriate care.
Relevance
The problem of HAPUs is particularly relevant to practice and nursing as it impacts a significant number of patients and specialists. In accordance with the statistics, pressure ulcers emerge in 23% of patients in health facilities dealing with long-term conditions (Bhattacharya & Mishra, 2015). Speaking about intensive care units, the lack of mobility of its patients significantly increases the risk of acquiring HAPUs and it becomes 40% (Bhattacharya & Mishra, 2015).
The scope of the problem evidences the need for immediate intervention. The issue constitutes a problem for modern healthcare as about 60.000 patients experience this complication every year (Swafford, Culpepper, & Dunn, 2016). Moreover, treatment of HAPUs presupposes costly pharmacological and surgical procedures to ensure the improvement of patients states. In such a way, about $9-11 million are spent per year by the U.S. health system for this issue (Swafford et al., 2016). These facts evidence the need for change to reduce the number of new cases of HAPUs, preserve the patients health status, and save costs.
Purpose
Under these conditions, the central purpose of this project is the in-depth investigation of the problem of HAPUs, their impact on the healthcare sector, and methods that can be used to reduce the number of new cases significantly and guarantee that patients will not suffer from complications associated with this health issue. To create the complete image of interventions that can efficiently solve the problem, it is fundamental to understand the causes for the occurrence of HAPUs in patients, environments that promote this process, devices, and approaches that can be useful while assisting this sort of patient in their recovery.
The target population for the investigation includes all patients who are in long-term rehabilitation facilities and experience reduced mobility because of the existing health issues (Bhattacharya & Mishra, 2015). Such innovative devices as special beds and surfaces should also be discussed to understand their potential effect (Bhattacharya & Mishra, 2015). The given investigation and planned interventions aim at the significant reduction in the number of HAPUs cases, improvement of patients states, and a decrease in costs needed to solve this problem.
Conclusion
Altogether, the facts provided above evidence the importance of the problem to the healthcare sector. It attracts our attention because of the spread and HAPUs negative impact on outcomes. Patients should not suffer from complications in health settings, which means that it is critical to eliminate the reasons for their emergence. The expected results of investigation and intervention, such as a reduction in new HAPUs and costs, are significant for the healthcare sector and patients. For this reason, the relevance of the selected issue could hardly be doubted, and there is the need for further research and in-depth analysis of all aspects associated with it.
References
Bhattacharya, S., & Mishra, R. (2015). Pressure ulcers: Current understanding and newer modalities of treatment. Indian Journal of Plastic Surgery, 48(1), 4-16. Web.
Swafford, K., Culpepper, R., & Dunn, C. (2016). Use of a comprehensive program to reduce the incidence of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers in an intensive care unit. American Journal of Critical Care, 25(2), 152-155. Web.