Association for the Advancement of Wound Care Leads World Health Organization Initiative to Establish Guidelines for Wound and Lymphedema Care

    MALVERN, Pa., Sept. 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Association for
 the Advancement of Wound Care (AAWC) is leading the development of
 guidelines for the global treatment of wounds and lymphedema at the request
 of the World Health Organization (WHO). The collaboration will
 significantly enhance the delivery of modern wound and lymphedema care to
 resource-poor countries. Recommendations have been provided by AAWC to WHO
 in the form of a White Paper entitled, Best Practice Recommendations for
 Wound and Lymphedema Management. To be published in six languages, the
 recommendations will provide the foundation for educational programs and
 clinical practice guidelines for providers and organizations around the
 world.
 
     An initial draft of the recommendations was accepted by Kingsley
 Asiedu, M.D., representing WHO, at a meeting in Geneva, Switzerland on
 March 5-6, 2008. Site visits in Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania are
 scheduled to enable further translation of the White Paper into applicable
 clinical guidelines. Pilot studies will be conducted to evaluate and
 monitor the effectiveness of the final recommendations.
 
     Chronic wounds are considered the new "Hidden Epidemic" affecting large
 portions of the world's population. Lymphedema affects over 300 million
 people. In resource-poor countries, the education and tools to prevent and
 manage these problems are often lacking.
 
     AAWC's outreach program entitled, "AAWC Global Alliance" seeks to
 establish partnerships with other organizations in order to advance the
 practice of wound care in resource-poor areas. This new partnership with
 WHO will significantly advance AAWC's global mission.
 
     Additionally, AAWC, in partnership with Health Volunteers Overseas
 (HVO), will be developing teaching templates for future volunteers who will
 train health professionals in resource poor areas to implement
 evidence-based treatment plans. These templates will provide strategies for
 teaching health care providers at primary, secondary and field levels.
 
     Contributors to the White Paper include Chairman John Macdonald, M.D. -
 USA; Mary Jo Geyer, PT, Ph.D. - USA; Robert Kirsner, M.D., Ph.D. - USA;
 Terry Treadwell, M.D. - USA; Laura Bolton, Ph.D. - USA; William Ennis, DO -
 USA; Gary Sibbald, M.D. - Canada; Heather Orstead, RN - Canada; David
 Keast, M.D. - Canada; Terrence Ryan, M.D. - England.
 
     ABOUT AAWC - AAWC is the largest, not-for-profit, multi-specialty
 organization in the United States dedicated to the research and clinical
 application of evidence-based wound care.
 
 
 

SOURCE Association for the Advancement of Wound Care