Clinical Outcomes of Real-Time e-Wound-Care Map: A Prospective Study on an Intelligent Model to Improve Wound Care Quality in Hospitals.

Abstract

As the aging society increases the prevalence of internal diseases with serious comorbidities, the burden of wounds becomes a critical issue. Constructing intelligent wound centers is essential. Learning from the pandemic, we developed a touchless system for monitoring and treating wound patients in our medical center. We established the real-time e-Wound Care Map system (e-WM system) and formulated a wound care protocol to improve clinical outcomes and enhance patient satisfaction. This single-center, prospective clinical study (June 2020 - May 2021) included 971 patients with serious wounds (AWM group) monitored through the e-WM system. We collected data from the previous year for 267 patients as the retrospective control group (PWM group). The multidisciplinary wound care team utilized four care bundles: standard wound care, specific dressing, biofilm control, and plastic surgical intervention. The e-snapshot system facilitated touchless communication and follow-up. The length of stay was significantly shorter in the AWM group compared to the PWM group (mean [SD] 18.0 [4.5] vs 23.7 [4.7], p<0.001). The pain score was significantly lower in the AWM group (mean [SD] 3.0 [0.6] vs 5.2 [1.3], p<0.001). The mortality rate was also significantly lower in the AWM group (3.6% vs 6.7%, p<0.05). The innovative e-WM system reduced patient-specialist contact, accelerated wound healing, and improved the quality of wound care. This creative real-time monitoring can be applied to other departments, forming the basis for the development of intelligent medical centers.