Wound Care and Dressings training that gets your team CQC-ready

You must report certain wound signs immediately to the nurse. These include increased redness, heat or swelling around the wound. Any new or increased discharge, especially if it is green, yellow or smells unpleasant, must be reported. If a resident reports increased pain or you notice the wound looks larger or deeper, tell the nurse straight away. Bleeding from a wound, even small amounts, needs reporting. Any signs of infection such as the resident feeling unwell or developing a temperature must be escalated immediately.

Only nurses and healthcare professionals trained in wound care should remove dressings, clean wounds, or apply new dressings. Your role is to observe and report. You should check that residents are comfortable and that dressings remain in place and intact. If a dressing becomes loose, wet, or falls off, inform the nurse immediately and do not attempt to replace it yourself. You should support residents to attend wound care appointments and ensure they are positioned comfortably during and after dressing changes. Always maintain the resident's dignity by providing privacy during wound care.

Accurate documentation is essential in wound care. You must record everything you observe about a wound or dressing in the resident's notes. Write down the date, time, what you saw, what the resident told you, and what action you took. Use clear, factual descriptions such as the colour of discharge or size of a wet area on a dressing. Never guess or use vague terms. If you report a concern to the nurse, document that you did so and record their response. Good communication between shifts ensures continuity of care. Always read handover notes about residents with wounds so you know what to observe.

Dressings are chosen to suit each wound. Absorbent dressings soak up fluid from wet wounds, thin film dressings protect fragile skin while letting the nurse see underneath, and foam dressings cushion the area and absorb at the same time. Because each dressing is chosen for a reason, never remove or change one unless you have been trained and the nurse has delegated that task to you. During personal care, keep dressings clean and dry by washing around them, not over them. Always clean your hands before and after touching the area, and wear gloves and an apron. If a dressing is soiled, wet or peeling loose, leave it in place and tell the nurse straight away.