Another New Year!

Another New Year!   It is hard to believe that another year has passed. What is even harder to believe is that this is the fifth January editorial I have written for WOUNDS. Yes, I am beginning my fifth year as the Clinical Editor of the journal. As I reflect on the last 4 years, I hope you can say that the journal has improved. The circulation and the number of articles submitted have increased. The quality of articles being published is improving and the online version of the journal (www.woundsresearch.com) now has articles available as downloadable PDF files, which is a great improvement over the previous method of downloading/printing articles. A new Online Exclusive section has been added to the journal’s website, which allows us to publish interesting case reports. Our team is also working to resurrect the popular Diagnostic Dilemmas section of the journal. Unfortunately, attaining PubMed indexing remains to be accomplished, but our efforts continue. Our goal is to continue to improve the journal so that it will be more beneficial to you, the reader, by becoming an essential source of wound care information and education. Any suggestions you might have to help us accomplish this goal would be greatly appreciated.   We have made goals for the journal for the new year, but have you made any goals for yourself for the new year? We call them “resolutions,” but, in fact, they are thoughts everyone has this time of year often with very little intention of accomplishing them. Are you really going to exercise more or lose 10 pounds this year? Instead of making resolutions we aren’t going to keep, why not develop a personal mission statement? You might associate mission statements with organizations and companies but not individuals. Why not? A mission statement is only a broad goal as to what one wants to accomplish in a period of time. It may be a short time, as in a few months or a year, or it could be longer, as in 5 years to a lifetime. The details of how to accomplish the mission statement are a continual work in progress to allow us to accomplish our mission as our lives and circumstances change. I challenge you to establish your own mission statement.   I would suggest a personal mission statement for wound care providers—to know, to grow, and to show.   To know means that you would strive to learn all you can about taking care of patients with wounds. You would need to learn evidence-based wound care techniques as well as alternative techniques. Being able to answer all the questions on a test does not make one an expert. To truly know about wound care one must know the history of the discipline, the diseases and how to diagnose them, and all possible treatments. It is essential to know multiple approaches to wounds because not all patients respond to the same treatment. To know about wound care is a life-long task.   To grow in wound care means to practice your skills to improve your abilities to help patients with wounds. Wound care is like any other specialty; the more you do, the better you become. If you treat many patients and follow their progress with different therapies, you will become more adept at identifying unusual wound problems that require special approaches, identifying therapies that work and ones that do not, and recognizing potential problems early before they become disasters. Growing your skill is highly rewarding and well worth the time invested.   To show in wound care means to demonstrate your concern for patients with wound problems. All of us involved in treating patients with wounds know that there can be reimbursement and social issues that make treatment seem impossible. We also know that if we go the extra mile and spend the time, most of these seemingly impossible obstacles can be overcome or, at least, circumvented. In doing this, we as healthcare providers are showing our concern for the patients and our willingness to help them. To show also means to demonstrate concern for our colleagues and a willingness to share our knowledge with them.   As we begin another year, I challenge you to formulate your personal mission statement for wound care. I would suggest you base it on the concepts of to know, to grow, and to show. Remember that life is not a sprint but a marathon. Missions do not have to be accomplished in any set time. The important thing is to outline the mission and work continually toward it. I would be honored if you would share your mission statement with me once you have formulated it. Happy New Year.