A Cross-sectional, Descriptive, Quality Improvement Project to Assess Undergraduate Nursing Students' Clinical Exposure to Patients With Wounds in an Introductory Nursing Course.

Because nurses frequently participate in decisions related to wound care, learning about wounds and their care during undergraduate education is critical. A cross-sectional, descriptive, quality improvement project was conducted in an introductory baccalaureate nursing course to identify: 1) the types of patients with wounds assigned to beginning students, 2) patient wound care procedures and dressings, and 3) student level of participation in wound care. Data were collected from the weekly notes recorded about students' (N = 49) patient care experiences in 3 acute care hospitals for 9 clinical days during 1 semester. Data were recorded on a paper-and-pencil form by instructors at the end of the clinical day and included type of wound, wound irrigation, dressing, technique of care, and student's participation. Descriptive statistics were used to examine the frequency and distribution of the wound characteristics and care assessed. Of the 284 patients assigned to students, 75 (26.4%) had a wound. The most common wound was a surgical incision (49, 65%) and was closed (36, 73.5%). Twenty-six (26) patients had a pressure ulcer, most commonly Stage II. The most common dressing was dry gauze (29). Damp gauze was used on 18 wounds. Wound irrigation was recorded for 24 wound protocols and performed with a bulb syringe or by pouring the solution from a container. Generally, nonsterile wound care was performed. Twenty-five (25) students performed wound care with the instructor, 16 watched the care performed by another clinician, and 10 participated with another nurse in the wound care. For 22 patients, the wound care was neither observed nor performed because either it was not time for the dressing to be changed or it was only to be changed by a medical team. From these data, it was concluded beginning nursing students had some, but limited, clinical experience with patients with wounds. Students' wound care experiences need further examination, especially across multiple educational courses.