This episode is created as part of the EWMA Toolkit project on Prevention of pressure ulcer/injury recurrence in patients with spinal cord injuries.
The podcast explores the ethical principles that shape prevention and management, including autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice.
The expert panel discusses how these principles guide day-to-day decisions:
- balancing patient autonomy with essential preventive actions
- involving family and informal caregivers in daily skin checks and risk - monitoring
- using interdisciplinary teamwork to ensure personalised and responsive care
- applying practical prevention strategies such as routine skin inspection, repositioning, appropriate seating systems and nutritional optimisation
Real clinical cases illustrate how ethical dilemmas arise when patient preferences, social context or system constraints complicate prevention. The episode emphasises that ethical practice requires communication, collaboration and a person-centred approach.
This episode features the following specialists:
Professor Dimitri Beeckman
Professor at Ghent University in Belgium and Örebro University in Belgium, where he is also the Pro Vice-Chancellor for Interantional Affairs
President, European Wound Management Association (EWMA)
Dimitri is one of the Editors for the project.
Mrs Hayley Ryan
Director of WoundRescue Pty Ltd, Australia & New Zealand
Adjunct Lecturer University of Technology Sydney
Wound Clinical Nurse Consultant, NSW & ACT Uniting
Emergency Department Clinician, John Hunter Hospital
PhD Researcher, Newcastle University
Mr Paulo Ramos
Nurse Specialist at ULS Póvoa de Varzim / Vila do Conde, USF Corino de Andrade, Portugal.
Certified wound care educator.
Board Member of the Portuguese Wound Care Association
EWMA Council Member and Chair of EWMA Education Committee.
Paulo is also one of the Editors for the project.
Professor Andrea Pokorna
Head of the Department of Health Sciences
Vice Dean for Healthcare Study Programmes and Information Technology
Masaryk University | Faculty of Medicine, Czech Republic
Member of the National Wound Care Association
Certified Wound Educator
Scientific Recorder, European Wound Management Association (EWMA)
Mrs Susan Flavin
Clinical Nurse Specialist Pressure Ulcer Prevention Intervention Service
Swansea Bay University Health Board, Wales, UK
