A wide array of training opportunities in foot and wound care will be featured at the “Woundstock: A New Dimension in Foot and Wound Care,” October 14 to 18, at the Florian Gardens Conference Center in Eau Claire, Wis. The University of Wisonsin-Eau Claire website states that attendees have the ability to pick and choose from seven programs intended to reinforce a knowledge base that will help ensure efficient treatment of patients’ current conditions and proactively prevent new issues from developing.

The first of the seven programs on day 1 of the event addresses wound treatment of burns, pressure ulcers, and pediatrics. According to the site, attendees will learn about a variety of topics, including the unique aspects of skin care and wound management for youth, the surgical perspective of grafts, flaps, and pressure ulcers, how hyperbaric oxygen therapy can help patients, as well as access information about burn management outside the burn center. Additionally, attendees will have the opportunity to investigate wound care products and learn how to determine which product is best to accommodate an individual case.

On the second day of the event, participants can attend the Wound Management: Offloading and Lymphedema program, which is designed to provide valuable hands-on experience in addition to educational information to improve attendees’ wound care practice. The site notes participants will increase their lower-extremity wound treatment abilities, learn how to conduct wheelchair seating assessments, identify offloading options available to provide relief for wheelchair patients, and receive key information regarding lymphedema management.

Advanced Wound Debridement is also among the programs offered at Woundstock. The site notes that the program is intended to provide comprehensive training in preparing the wound bed to heal using sharp debridement, as well as other current forms of debridement. During the program, participants will learn about the anatomy and physiology of viable and nonviable tissues and structures encountered in wound care, identify anatomical structures and types of tissue commonly seen in sharp debridement, as well as compare and contrast different types of debridement and understand the indications and contraindications of each with specific wound types.

Participants will also be brought up to date regarding new technologies and products used in the debridement process, learn to maximize reimbursements by using appropriate terminology and documentation used in sharp debridement, learn sharp debridement techniques, and recognize legal implications, and policy and procedures related to debridement.

Recommended attendees for each of these programs include physical therapists, physical therapy assistants, occupational therapists, COTAs, physicians, physician assistants, nurses, and nurse practitioners.

In its second through fifth days, the event also features the programs Foot and Nail Care: Education for Nurses and Clinical Practicum, Foot and Nail Care: How to Start and Run Your Own Business, Lower Extremity Therapy, and the Wound Treatment Associate (WTA) Online Program.

 For more information and a full list of programs, visit the Woundstock website.

[Source: University of Wisonsin-Eau Claire]