Wound preparation, which encompasses cleansing and debridement, involves preparing the skin and all areas of the wound for healing. Cleansing and debridement are clinically proven to speed up wound healing by removing slough, devitalised tissue and biofilm (Wilcox et al, 2013). Removing the barriers that may delay wound healing is a crucial step in wound care, allowing wound assessment, reducing risk of infection and promoting development of healthy tissue.

Wound care is often seen as a specialist area, which may result in non-specialist nurses and other healthcare workers believing that techniques, such as cleansing and debridement require specialist skills. Generalist healthcare workers remain the primary point of care for most people with wounds — especially community and district nurses. They play an important role in clinical decision making regarding whether cleansing and debridement are necessary, which method(s) to use, and whether to perform debridement themselves or refer.

Although debridement can be an intimidating step in wound care, a capable healthcare worker can perform some level of debridement. As the demography of the wound care workforce grows to include healthcare assistants and support workers, this Best Practice Recommendation aims to support all who are involved in wound care to be confident and capable to know how, when and why to conduct wound preparation.

An Expert Working Group encompassing a diverse range of wound care specialists met online to develop the practical tools required to facilitate optimum wound preparation. Alprep® Pad (Coloplast Limited) offers a solution for all who are involved in wound care to conduct wound preparation with a focus on cleansing and debridement.