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Delivering a Healthy WA
WoundsWest

WoundsWest Advisory Service

Two ladies working on a computer

Monday – Friday 8.00am and 4.00pm

‘Wound healing is a complex process involving a sequence of events that starts at the time of injury and ends with complete wound closure and successful, functional scar tissue organisation1’

The WoundsWest Advisory Service (WWAS) aims to improve the knowledge and skill levels of clinicians in the assessment and management of wounds and to optimise outcomes for patients with wounds.

The purpose of the service is to support clinicians to incorporate evidence-based wound management into their practice to enable the delivery of wound management services to patients in their own community or local health service.

To optimise wound management for your patient, the following may benefit from referral to the WWAS

  • Acute wounds where healing is delayed (no signs of healing within 7 days or wound closure not achieved by 6 weeks)
  • Chronic wounds where healing is delayed ( less than 30% reduction in wound size at week 4 or not healed by 12 weeks2)
  • All wounds with potential for delayed healing due to co morbid conditions
  • Skin tears occurring on the lower legs
  • Wounds with complications such as infection
  • Highly exudating wounds
  • Wounds with complex or costly dressing requirements
  • Wounds requiring frequent dressing changes
  • Wounds which have recurred
  • Wounds not within the clinicians scope of practice

Patient related enquiries:

If you require wound advice for a patient please commence a patient e-health record including digital wound images to enable remote consultation via the WWAS

  • Department of Health employees please use - Secure Health Record Exchange (SHaRE ). Please contact Health Information Network 1300 170 089 to register (coming soon please use link for Other Health Professionals until further notice)
  • Other Health Professionals please use-  Medical Messenger Exchange (MMEx) (external site) Please contact MMEx helpdesk on 1300 722 926 to register

SHaRE or MMEx can be used at your health care facility as a tool for documenting and managing your patient’s wounds, collaborating with other health professionals and to refer to the WoundsWest Advisory Service. SHaRE and MMEx require Silverlight software  to maximise use of the program. Please download from link or contact your local IT support.

Silverlight 5 RC http://www.microsoft.com/getsilverlight

All other enquiries (including enquiries relating to patient referral)

1Holloway S, Harding K, Stechmiller K, & Schultz G. Acute and Chronic Wound Healing. In: Baranoski S & Ayello E. Wound Care Essentials: Practice Principles 3rd Ed (2011). Philadelphia. Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.

2 Sibbald G, Goodman l, Woo Y, Krasner D, Smart H, Tariq G, Ayello E, Burrell R, keast D, Mayer D, Norton L & Salcido R. Special considerations in wound bed preparation 2011: An update. Advances in Skin and Wound Care 24 (9).