Section 8-1: Conclusions - (Untitled Section)

The review of PACT data described in the original report indicated that significant financial savings could be achieved on an `All Wales' basis by making changes to prescribing patterns for surgical dressings. Although some of the proposed changes are relatively trivial, others may require medical and nursing staff to consider more fundamental modifications to their approach to wound management and the treatment of chronic wounds such as venous leg ulcers. Some changes may not be accepted for reasons which have been outlined in the text, but nevertheless it is conservatively estimated that it should be possible to reduce expenditure on wound management by at least £250,000 in material costs alone. These figures take no account of much larger, long-term savings which would result from an improvement in the healing rate of venousulcers[Image-16K] following the use of more effective types of compression bandages. It is therefore proposed that urgent attention be given to the development of research-based wound management formularies designed to limit the use of dressings to those items which meet accepted standards of safety and efficacy. The aim of such formularies should not be to exclude new developments but to ensure that the dressings which are available are used in a cost effective manner. This in turn implies a comprehensive programme of training and education for all those involved in wound care, for without such training the selection and use of dressings will continue to be unscientific and wasteful both in terms of time and physical resources. Dr S Thomas, Surgical Materials Testing Laboratory, Bridgend General Hospital, Bridgend.