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P R E S S U R E
I N J U R I E S
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PRESSURE'S OFF With the right precautions and the right positioning, pressure injuries can be virtually eliminated.
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The 5 P's of Skin Injury Prevention
Focus on people, practice, perception, products and pressure redistribution.
Anne Nowlin, RN, CNOR
Ann Marie Whaley, RN, CWOCN
Pasadena, Calif.
"How is that possible?" "It
must be a mistake!" "They must have had it before surgery." You may have heard a few of these typical responses when nurses and doctors realize their patients have developed pressure injuries. To transition your staff from doubters to advocates of keeping patients' skin intact, focus on the 5 P's of perioperative ulcer prevention.
1. People. Most of us recognize that a pressure ulcer is "a localized injury to the skin or underlying tissue usually over a bony prominence, as a result of pressure, or pressure in combination with shear." That's the definition given by the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP). But the panel adds: "A number of contributing or confounding factors are also associated with pres-
