The Development of a Care Protocol for Postoperative Pressure Sore Prevention

Abstract Pressure sores are a common complication caused by long periods of bed rest following major surgery. These sores may increase patient postoperative pain, increase the risk of infections, lengthen the pe-riod of hospitalization, and increase the duration and costs of nursing care. Therefore, maintaining the skin integrity of surgical patients is an important responsibility for operating room nurses and an indicator of nursing care quality. While pressure-sore risk assessment tools and interoperative strategies are available and used in foreign countries, there has been little related research conducted in Taiwan. After examining the relevant literature and considering the current postoperative pressure sore situation in Taiwan, the author developed a postoperative pressure sore care protocol as a reference for clinical staff. Protocol procedures include major breakthrough developments in areas such as post-survey risk assessment for pressure ulcers, pressure ulcer prevention strategies that take surgery-related risk factors into consideration, extra care and protection measures for surgical supine patients, and post-pressure sores. The developed postoperative pressure sore protocol may be incorporated into surgical care procedures during the post-surgical care period in order to effectively prevent the occurrence of post-surgery pressure ulcers. Furthermore, the developed protocol offers the potential to improve and strengthen the quality of surgical care in terms of both healthcare and post-surgical care.