A wound that doesn’t heal impacts everyday life and more…it represents the potential for serious health consequences. If you have a wound that is slow to heal, especially if it hasn’t healed within 30 days, talk to your doctor about treatment options.

Blue Ridge Regional Hospital is prepared to treat wounds by offering several levels of care designed to meet individual needs. Our Wound Healing Center provides essential care, patient/care-giver education, and surgery for wound healing. Skin grafts and surgical debridements are performed close to home in the Surgery Department here at Blue Ridge Regional Hospital. Our affiliation with Mission Health System ensures continuity of care and provides our patients with more advanced wound treatments, procedures and options for wound healing. Our training in wound care, unique techniques and specialty products help wounds heal quickly, and prevent their progression to infection, gangrene or limb loss.

Referrals are required, so please talk to your primary care physician about Wound Healing if you believe you or a loved one could benefit from our services. If you have questions or would like to schedule an appointment, call 828-766-3249.

Wound Care Patients
Patients treated in the Wound Healing Center must have an open or draining wound.

Criteria and conditions treated in the Wound Healing Center:

• Diabetic foot ulcers/lower extremity ulcers
• Decubitus ulcers/pressure ulcers
• Venous stasis ulcers
• Post surgical wounds/infections
• Dehiscence sites
• Skin tears or lacerations
• Traumatic injuries
• Post surgical wounds
• Spider bites (Brown Recluse)
• Burns
• Radiation injuries/tissue damage
• Slow or non-healing wounds
• Any wound or ulcer that has not shown signs of healing in 30 days

Warning Signs of Infection
An infected wound may be quite dangerous. Left untreated, it may spread into the bloodstream and become life threatening. Seek medical help immediately if you see any warning signs of infection:

• Pus or other drainage from the wound
• Red skin or red streaks
• Swelling or warm skin around the wound
• Foul odor
• Fever

Wound Healing Services
The team at Blue Ridge Regional Hospital provides a variety of services to treat non-healing wounds at two levels of care: essential wound care and surgical intervention.

Essential Wound and Ostomy Care
Registered nurses coordinate with your primary care physician. Your doctor prescribes the wound treatment you need and our experienced nurses deliver the services. You’re in good hands at the Wound Healing Center…

• Our registered nurses are specially certified Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses

Treatments available from skilled nurses in the Wound Healing Center include:

• Wound care – dressing changes, topical treatments
• Limited wound debridement – basic cleaning
• Ostomy care – includes education for new ostomy patients, treatment for ostomy problems and skin care
• Negative pressure wound therapy (Wound VAC) – improves healing by reducing excess fluid
• Unna boots and  multi-layered compression dressing for the leg that decreases swelling
• Dopplers – device to measure blood flow
• High risk foot and nail care – care targeted for people with diabetes, lower extremity arterial disease and neuropathy

Surgical Intervention
Board certified general surgeons contribute to your wound care by performing two procedures in the Surgery Department at Blue Ridge Regional Hospital:

• Wound debridement – deep tissue cleaning
• Skin grafts – to cover the wound and promote healing

Advanced Wound Care
Our affiliation with Mission Health System expands the level of wound care available to our patients. Procedures are in place to ensure complete communication between hospitals and smooth transfer of care should your wound require advanced treatment. Our team may refer you to McDowell Hospital Wound Healing Center or Mission Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Center for services such as:

• Total contact casting – special cast used to redistribute pressure from the sole of the foot to allow wound healing
• Off-loading – use of devices such as shoes, inserts, casts and boots to reduce pressure on foot wounds
• Growth factor therapies and biological therapies– advanced products to stimulate new tissue growth

Additional specialized services are available to our patients through Mission Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Center. Mission’s wound center offers exceptional advanced treatment options from medical staff that includes a physician who is board certified in Internal Medicine, Hyperbaric Medicine and a Certified Wound Physician, as well as licensed physical therapists certified in manual lymph drainage:

• Advanced surgical procedures such as reconstruction
• Hyperbaric oxygen therapy – delivers high concentrations of oxygen to help wounds heal
• Manual lymph drainage – provided by physical therapists
• TCOM (transcutaneous oxygen measurements)

Education and Support
You can count on us for more than quality medical treatment. We understand that it may be difficult for patients and their loved ones to deal with a wound that is slow to heal, so we teach you how to care for your wound at home, provide instructions on how to change dressings and talk about how to prevent further injuries.

We encourage family members and caregivers to come to appointments in the Wound Healing Center. We gladly answer questions and offer educational and nutritional information that’s critical for wound healing. We’re here to support you throughout the process and when appropriate, will help you seek individualized services from programs at Blue Ridge Regional Hospital such as the Diabetes Self-Management Education Program and Nutrition Services.

Appointments and Information
A physician’s referral is needed before you may obtain services in the Wound Healing Center. Please talk to your primary care physician about how we may help you.

To schedule an appointment, or if you have any questions about wound care, call us at 828-766-3249.

Location
Wound Healing Center
Blue Ridge Regional Hospital
125 Hospital Dr.
Spruce Pine, NC 28777