Decolonising wound care teaching

Human skin is an amazing and vital part of the body. It is the largest organ and accounts for around 16% of body weight. It reacts to pressure, transmits sensation and responds to touch; it regulates our body temperature, regenerates daily and, importantly, it is the first thing that others see when they look at us. The skin's melanin content dictates the pigment of the skin, and it is often this that defines what others see. Sadly, variation in pigment also needs to be understood in the context of racism, prejudice and discrimination.

Wound care, tissue viability and dermatology are all important areas of clinical care delivery that have skin as their focus. Breaks in the skin or wounds affect many people; indeed, in 2012/13, some 2.2 million patients presented to a health professional with a wound (Guest et al, 2015). Wounds impact significantly on an individual's quality of life and their day-to-day functioning; they are often painful, and require cleansing, dressing and reviewing by a range of health professionals.