An audit of the adequacy of acute wound care documentation of surgical inpatients.

Aims And Objectives: This study examined the degree to which acute wound care documentation by doctors and nurses meets the standards set in the Australian Wound Management Association guidelines, focusing on clinical history with regard to the wound, wound characteristics, evidence of a management plan and factors such as wound pain.

Background: Wound care documentation is an important component of 'best practice' wound management. Evidence suggests that wound documentation by hospital staff is often ad hoc and incomplete.