NHS Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has initiated NHS England’s ‘React to Red’ pressure ulcer prevention training with care staff to reduce the number of elderly people experiencing pressure ulcers primarily in care settings.

Residents in care homes often have complex care needs, are increasingly frail and are therefore at high risk of developing pressure ulcers.

An intensive face-to-face training programme - delivered by the CCG’s project team - has resulted in a 75% decrease in the incidence of reported pressure ulcers in care homes within the Vale of York, contributing to increased quality of life for residents.

Michelle Carrington, the CCG’s Executive Director of Quality and Nursing said: “Whilst recognising 95% of pressure ulcers are preventable, they remain a significant healthcare problem for the most vulnerable with implications such as pain, reduced mobility, social isolation and increased dependency on health and social care services

“Care home staff in the Vale of York are applying knowledge and skills from the React to Red training programme to effectively promote skin integrity and recognise early signs of damage.

“Many care homes have recognised the benefits of the programme, each embracing the programme wholeheartedly and with compassionate care and embedding the work into induction and annual refresher training and we hope this will enable the positive impact to be sustained.”

Thanks to the programme other health issues have been identified relating to nutrition and hydration, and mobility and continence. These were able to impact on the reduction of other harms in the elderly such as falls, Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) and Acute Kidney Injury (AKI).

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