Dressing Smart

To avoid causing any exacerbation of a skin tear or similar wound when changing a self-adherent soft silicone foam dressing, I draw an arrow on the dressing over the spot where the skin edges meet, running perpendicular to the skin flap. This minimizes the risk of recurrent trauma from raising the skin flap during dressing changes.
—— Debra Miller, RN
         Fairfield, Conn