Wound Care and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
Approximately seven million people suffer from chronic wounds annually.
Hispanics and African Americans have a higher incidence of wounds than Caucasians.
Populations with high rates of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and the elderly have a higher incidence of chronic wounds.
One of the major health care problems in the U.S. is diabetes.
Approximately 24 million people in the U.S. are diabetics, of which 15 million have not yet been diagnosed.
This incidence accounts for approximately 8% of the population.
Diabetic wounds are the majority of chronic wounds seen in most clinic settings.
More than 60% of non-traumatic amputations occur in diabetics.
The rate of amputation is 10 times greater in diabetics than in the general population.
It is projected that approximately 30 million people will have diabetes by the year 2050.
Though treatment modalities for wound care have drastically improved over the years, and wound healing successes have prevented amputations, expensive rehabilitation and hospitalization costs, and even deaths; wound prevalence continues to climb.
Comprehensive Wound Centers
Hospital based comprehensive wound care centers, offering multiple treatment modalities, including hyperbaric oxygen therapy, have been instituted in hospitals around the country for over 20 years.
Vascular intervention and comprehensive wound care programs have had a positive impact on amputation rates, health care resource utilization, including hospitalization and surgeries, and improved quality of life for patients presenting with problem wounds.
Reimbursement for outpatient wound care and hyperbaric oxygen therapy not only provides increased revenue for hospitals, but also can provide hospital administrators a way to work with physicians as independent contractors.
Development of a Comprehensive Wound Care Program is multifaceted involving assessment and planning, design and construction, development of the wound care team (physicians and staff), the procurement and installation of equipment, business development, and the implementation of clinical, financial and operational systems that ensure the best possible outcomes and provide a positive impact to the bottom line.
Wound care involves aggressive treatment; across the continuum of care of acute wounds while patients are in the hospital and comprehensive treatment of chronic refractory wounds in an outpatient center.
