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What is this information about?
This information is about being actively involved in your wound care by caring for your wound yourself at home, also called self-dressing.
Self-dressing means cleaning your wound, checking it for signs of infection, and changing the dressing (the bandage).
This information gives you a step-by-step guide to self-dressing, as well as explaining the benefits of self-dressing and caring for your wound.
It tells you who to contact for support and if you have any concerns.
Why have I been given this information?
You have been provided with this information to help you better understand your condition and help you to take an active role in your wound care.
Keep this information handy so that you can refer to it when you are changing your dressing at home, and share it with your family or carers.
Being involved in your own care helps you to make informed decisions about your treatment options, and work in partnership with your healthcare team.
What are the benefits of self-dressing?
Empowerment
Taking charge of your wound care can make you feel more in control of your health and less reliant on others.
Improved healing
Being actively involved can help you to have a better understanding of your condition and help you stick to your treatment plan. This may improve your healing.
Convenience
Self-dressing allows you to manage your wound care on your schedule. You will not need to visit the clinic as much.
Confidence
Learning to care for your wound can boost your confidence to manage your overall health.
Being actively involved in your own care will also help the doctors and nurses looking after you to know more about you. This helps to create a partnership between you, and supports clear and open communication. This will help you and your plastic surgery nurses make well-informed decisions together.
What should I consider before changing my dressing?
There are three important things to remember before you start the process of dressing your wound.
Cleanliness
- Wash your hands: Always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water before and after handling your dressing to prevent infection.
- Clean supplies: Make sure that you have all your dressing supplies nearby, and that they are clean.
- Clean surfaces: Make sure you have a hard surface available (like a tray or table) that has been cleaned with a disinfectant cleaning spray and wipe.
- Pet and fur free room: Animal fur and saliva increases the risk of your wound becoming infected. Dressing changes need to be done away from pets and pet fur.
Pain management
- Be gentle: Handle the wound and surrounding skin carefully to avoid causing pain or further injury. Use adhesive remover or remove dressings in the shower to prevent trauma to the surrounding skin.
- Pain relief: If you experience pain during dressing changes, talk to your healthcare provider about pain relief options or methods to make the process more comfortable.
Monitor the wound for infection
Be aware
If you notice any of the signs below, call the plastic surgery nurses (8.00am to 4.00pm Monday to Thursday, 8.00am to 1.00pm Friday). You will find their contact details at the end of this information.
If you are concerned about your wound outside of these hours, go to your local A&E department.
Look out for:
Increased redness
Increased pain
Swelling
Pus
Bad smell from the wound
The wound feels hotter than normal
Record what you see:
Take a photo of the wound at each dressing change to track healing progress or any concerning changes. These photos can be sent to your plastic surgery nurses if you have any concerns.
Will my dressings be provided?
Yes. The plastic surgery nurses will supply you with the dressings that you need. They will plan for your wound care.
Steps for completing wound care
1. Remove your dressing
If you have an adhesive dressing, use the adhesive remover to remove the dressing gently. Your plastic surgery nurses will give this to you if needed. The dressing can also be soaked with warm water in the shower if you prefer.
2. Clean your wound
To clean your wound, use fresh running tap water such as in the shower. Running water helps to remove bacteria and debris away from the wound to effectively clean the wound bed. Let the water run over the wound, this will clean the wound bed.
Do not scrub the wound with flannels or wash clothes as this could disrupt the healing.
Bacteria can be transferred onto the wound if the water is not clean and running. For this reason, baths, hot tubs, swimming pools or the sea are not suitable when you have a wound.
3. Dry the Area
Avoid using towels on the wound. Let it air dry or use the cool setting of a hair dryer.
4. Redress the Wound
Follow the dressing plan provided by the plastic surgery team below.
Dressing Plan
| Cleansing | Prontosan ☐ | Shower ☐ | Saline ☐ |
| Skin Protector | Barrier film ☐ | Barrier Cream☐ | Moisturiser ☐ |
| First dressing layer | |||
| Second dressing layer | |||
| Third dressing layer | |||
| Change dressing every |
Who can I contact for further information and advice?
Clinical Plastic Surgery Team
In an emergency call 999.
If out of hours call 111 or contact your GP for advice.
01273 696955
Ext. 65956
Monday to Thursday
8:00 am to 4:30 pm
Friday
8:00 am to 1:00 pm
The information in this leaflet is for guidance purposes only and is in no way intended to replace professional clinical advice by a qualified practitioner.