I am pleased to announce that the 2017 National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP) Biennial Conference entitled Pressure Injury: Advancing the Vision is hosting a panel of experts to discuss the terminology and evidence related to the important issue of end-of-life wounds and skin failure.  This panel is only one of the educational components of the Biennial Conference which will take place in New Orleans on March 10 and 11th, which will include presentations on best practices for staging and treatment, palliative care for pressure injuries, and others. 

There are currently a number of terms used for the well-recognized phenomenon of skin failure and end-of-life wounds.  These include the Kennedy Terminal Ulcer (KTU), Trombley-Brennan Terminal Tissue Injury (TBTTI) and Skin Changes at Life’s End (SCALE).  I will be speaking as well as Karen Kennedy-Evans RN, FNP, APRN-BC, R. Gary Sibbald BSc, MD, M.ED, D.SC, Mary Brennan RN, MBA, CWON, Diane Langemo PhD, RN, FAAN, and Stella Mandl RN, BSN, BSW, PHN from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).  The session will be moderated by Elizabeth A. Ayello PhD, RN, ACNS-BC, CWON. 

Each presenter will discuss aspects of the terminology including evidence supporting it, as well as the benefits and consequences of recommended nomenclature.  The panel will be followed by case presentations from across the country that illustrate concepts discussed in the panel.  The cases will be presented by wound specialists who have submitted photographs and case narratives that were reviewed and accepted by the NPUAP Education Committee. 

As Chair of the NPUAP’s Education Committee I am thrilled that NPUAP has the collaboration of these experts, including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on this important panel.  I hope to see you in New Orleans!

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Related posts:

Skin Failure: An Emerging Concept

Historical Roots of the “Avoidable-Unavoidable” Pressure Ulcer Controversy

Determining the Avoidability of Pressure Ulcers

New Research Sheds Light on Hospital Acquired Pressure Ulcers

CMS recognizes the Kennedy Terminal Ulcer in Long-term Care Hospitals

NPUAP Introduces New Clinical Practice Guideline for Pressure Ulcers

Jean Martin Charcot’s Lecture on Pressure Ulcers:  An Important Historical Document

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