Guest Editorial: Have You Learned Anything Today?

Life is about learning; when you stop learning, you die. — Tom Clancy, author

  Although learning is (or at least should be) a lifetime endeavor, many people reach the end of their formal school programs and breathe a sigh of relief, thinking the books can be put away and studying and learning are no more. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President of the United States, said, “School is not the end but only the beginning of an education.” This is particularly relevant to healthcare. No matter what your branch of medicine, there is always something to learn. With this in mind, the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care (AAWC) has adopted as one of its goals “to be an indispensable resource for education, resources, and knowledge exchange” for wound care providers.¹ The Association wants to facilitate the learning process for those involved in the care of patients with wounds. To assist in this process, the AAWC is championing a program involving the 3 T’s of learning: 1) Tell, 2) Teach, and 3) Train.

  Tell. It may seem a bit presumptive to suggest people need to be told what they need to know, but if wound care providers knew what they should, why are wet-to-dry still the most common dressings used? Evidence clearly has shown that wet-to-dry dressings are not preferred for any type of wound. Plus, if we all know what we should, why are the two most common reasons cited for not introducing modern wound care into our institutions 1) physician resistance and 2) the lack of knowledge of current research?

  Teach. The AAWC is striving to develop wound care educational programs for all wound care providers — from those just beginning a wound care career to those considered experts in the field. This requires utilizing multiple approaches to meet a variety of learning needs. Some people learn best with lectures, some with hands-on experiences, some by reading manuscripts and books, and some through computer courses. Some want to learn while sitting in an easy chair with the information in front of them while others prefer to have the information in an easily accessible format on a handheld computer or BlackBerry. The AAWC is aware of the challenges of providing instruction and is working to meet them.

  Train. The third T comes after one has learned information. Do you hoard what you know or do you want to pass it on to others? In times past, information was considered power — if you had the information, you had the power and for this reason did not pass it on lest others be as powerful as you. Hopefully, that attitude is less prevalent today, especially in wound care. People with knowledge must be given the tools to tell and teach others. I feel strongly this is an obligation we have to our fellow wound care practitioners. If one does not share knowledge, what good does it do? Isn’t the basis for all scientific publications, including this one, to share and distribute information and knowledge?

  I often hear the statement, “I don’t know enough wound care information to share.” Never underestimate the power of your knowledge. Most of you know the problems with wet-to-dry dressings. Even simple actions such as how to apply a bandage correctly can be useful to many people. Those are good subjects with which to start teaching. You don’t have to appear on a national stage and lecture to hundreds of people to effectively share information. The simplest way is to tell a friend or coworker what you have learned. You may be surprised what knowledge you receive in return. Or, you could organize your information and present it as a poster at a wound care meeting; there are plenty of resources to help with poster development to get you started on your project, including the AAWC Poster Grand Rounds by Dr. Barbara Bates-Jensen and Dr. Tom Serena at SAWC meetings. The AAWC also wants to provide opportunities to share information in a more formal manner; programs for interested people to gain experience lecturing at smaller venues are under development.

  You also could write an article for publication in a wound care journal. HMP wound care journals (Ostomy Wound Management, WOUNDS, and Today’s Wound Clinic) are excellent sources for wound care information. I promise that everyone associated with the HMP journals is eager to assist — you need not feel embarrassed when you ask about manuscript preparation and publication.

  This month’s OWM articles present the reader with an interesting overview of current concerns in wound care. Goldberg and Beitz point out that not everyone responds to chronic wounds in the same way. The authors use phenomenological analysis to emphasize that living with chronic wounds is an individual experience, particularly for members of varied ethnic groups, underscoring the need for caregivers to pay attention to each individual patient and strive to meet the needs and expectations of the person with the wound.

  Carter’s article on cost-effectiveness research is particularly timely; there is no question we need to be better at determining the cost-effectiveness of our therapies. Head-to-head evaluation to see which of several treatments may be most effective should include cost to determine the best care we can provide for the money spent. This article explains where we need to focus attention as we move forward with clinical and cost-effectiveness evaluation.

  Ennis et al provide a timely article regarding disaster preparedness. The authors share their experiences helping organize and working in a wound center in an acute disaster situation. Dr. Ennis and others who went to Haiti in the aftermath of the earthquake disaster are to be congratulated for their outstanding efforts under dire circumstances. Their trials and triumphs offer guidance for wound care providers helping in a similar circumstances in the future. Additional articles^2,3 on the subject are available at www.missionarymedicine.net.

  Publications such as OWM and AAWC initiatives like the AAWC Wound Care Education Program can only succeed with your help. There is no way that just a few people can share information with every wound care provider in this country, much less around the world. Every AAWC member must be willing to participate and Tell, Teach, and Train. If you are interested in membership or more 3T information, please contact me at TATread@aol.com or the AAWC Executive Director, Tina Thomas, at tthomas@aawconline.org.

1. AAWC Strategic Plan, adopted 2009. Available by contacting tthomas@aawconline.com.

2. Isaacs K. Effective Disaster Response in Complex Humanitarian Environments. Presented at Missionary Medicine Seminar, The Cove, Asheville, NC. October 7-10, 2010. Available at: www.missionarymedicine.net/seminar.php?year=2010. Accessed October 26, 2010.

3. Quist B. Medical Response Teams in Disaster Relief: Pitfalls and Solutions. Presented at Missionary Medicine Seminar, The Cove, Asheville, NC. October 7-10, 2010. Available at: www.missionarymedicine.net/seminar.php?year=2010. Accessed October 26, 2010.