Authors (including presenting author) :
LEE SY, Wong CK, Tang YY, Yiu WY, Kong CY, Chow ECS, Wong NMR
Affiliation :
Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, United Christian Hospital
Introduction :
Wound management is crucial in orthopaedic practice. Efficient and effective assessment and documentation of acute and chronic wounds are essential to improve wound diagnosis, monitor wound progress, optimize treatment plans, and hence improve clinical outcomes. Traditional practice on wound assessment and documentation adopt a manual technique, which is invasive, time-consuming and imprecise. With the advancement in technology, wound assessment can be performed using artificial intelligence and the wound information can be uploaded to an online platform for easy monitoring and review.
Objectives :
To evaluate the feasibility and outcome of implementing the SMART wound care program in orthopeadic patients in United Christian Hospital.
Methodology :
The SMART wound care program include several components: 1) An artificial intelligence-driven 3-dimensional digital scanner for wound capture and measurement; 2) Digital documentation of wound information and treatment details; 3) an online platform for storage of patient’s wound information and 4) Treatment monitor and review using the online platform during routine wound round. The SMART wound care program was implemented in orthopaedic patients in UCH since September 2022. A total of 100 cases had been recruited. Wound information for these cases had been accurately recorded, retrieved and reviewed during routine wound round.
Result & Outcome :
The SMART wound care program is a feasible option for wound management in orthopaedic patients. It is efficient and effective in enhancing wound care. The consistency and accuracy of wound measurement had remarkably improved. The manual workload for nursing staffs had reduced. The patients’ satisfaction score and medical staffs’ satisfaction score were high. The easily retrievable wound information enhanced wound specialist decision-making on treatment plans, and resulted in faster wound healing and shorter hospital stay. The advantages include the following: 1. The device is user-friendly and easy to implement. 2. Reduce manual workload of nursing staff for wound measurement and documentation. 3. Provide a pain-free assessment during wound measurement. 4. Improve the precision in measurement of the actual wound size in a 3-dimensional manner. 5. The online platform allow more efficient review and monitoring of wound condition and hence optimize the implementation of management plan. 6. This method is paperless and more environmentally friendly. 7. Allow tele-medicine and remote assessment and consultation.
