Ensuring the voices of SCI people are heard

SIA to play key role in the National Wound Care Strategy Programme.

There are far too many people in the UK, including many people with a spinal cord injury, who live with chronic wounds such as leg ulcers and pressure ulcers. Nationally, the overall numbers are increasing rapidly, and we are very aware that too many people with chronic wounds do not receive the care that is likely to be most effective. With the right care, many of these wounds could heal more quickly, or actually be prevented from occurring at all.

NHS England is funding the National Wound Care Strategy Programme (NWCSP) to scope and develop a national wound care strategy for England with a focus on:

• Pressure ulcers,
• Ulcers on the lower leg and foot, and
• Surgical wounds that fail to heal.

The key missions for the NWCSP are to develop:

• Recommendations about how to improve patient care.
• Better ways to obtain wound care dressings and other treatments for wounds.
• Better education and information for people who deliver wound care and for patients and carers.
• Better ways of measuring what is happening to help improve care.

All of which is absolutely vital for SCI people! This is why SIA is delighted to have successfully applied to be part of the NWCSP, with Dave Bracher, SIA’s Campaigns Manager, having been appointed as a Patient & Public Voice (PPV) partner.

Dave will be using the knowledge acquired by working for SIA, alongside his ‘lived experience’, to bring a powerful perspective into the NWCSP and help inform service developments and improvements. The primary activities of a PPV partner are to:

• Ensure that the NWCSP considers/prioritises the service user, patient, carer, and family perspective.
• Champion and advocate for increasing patient and public awareness of the programme’s outcomes and achievements.
• Provide a ‘critical friend’ challenge into the group.
• Champion the diversity of patient and public views (i.e., not just represent their own experience).
• Review and comment on documentation.

This is a tremendous opportunity for SIA to be at the centre of shaping healthcare services in this vitally important area, and inform and support the development of better care, support and education at a national level.

Find out more about the National Wound Care Strategy Programme.