Qld provider joins wound project
The $28 million project will develop improved clinical treatments for chronic wounds.
Staff members from a major Queensland aged and community care provider will be at the forefront of a $28 million research project on wound management.
Blue Care’s Executive Director, Stephen Muggleton drew attention to the study during the Australian Wound Management Association’s ‘Elephant in the Room’ awareness campaign, which runs from 15 to 28 March.
The research project is being conducted by the Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) for Wound Management Innovation and is being led by Professor Zee Upton and Professor Helen Edwards from the Queensland University of Technology.
“As Australia’s largest not-for-profit provider of community health and residential aged care it is exciting to align with universities, state-wide health organisations and our alliance partners to carry out informed research into wound care,” Mr Muggleton said.
He added that wound management is a growing issue in the aged care issue.
“Alarmingly 3,000 lower limb amputations are performed nationally every year on patients with non-healing leg ulcers, a common and uncomfortable chronic disease among older people,” he said.
“Chronic wounds account for almost 50 per cent of Blue Care’s community nursing – a significant figure considering our nurses and carers make more than three million visits a year.”
It may be 12-18 months before therapies and models from the project emerge for testing and evaluation.
Mr Muggleton said Blue Care would be keen to incorporate the project’s findings into its community nursing programs.
