WHO WE ARE...AND HOW YOU CAN JOIN US
THE AMERICAN PROFESSIONAL WOUND CARE ASSOCIATION (APWCA) was founded in 2001 to bring together health care professionals from various disciplines in an effort to facilitate an integrated, multidisciplinary approach to wound care. The benefits of a team approach are well documented in the medical literature, such as the improved outcomes seen in burn patients who were cared for by a multidisciplinary team. The wound care literature reports similar success stories, such as a reduction in lower limb loss related to ulceration, infection, and ischemia when a multidisciplinary team managed patient care.
The APWCA is the brainchild of Steven R. Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA, executive director, and Robert Gunther, DPM, FAPWCA, president. "The mission of APWCA is to help decrease the rate of complications from chronic wounds, accelerate wound healing, and preserve or enhance the quality of life for these patients," Dr. Gunther said. "APWCA addresses its mission by providing high-quality, interactive, interdisciplinary medical education and by serving as an informational resource for at-risk patients and the lay public at large."
Said Dr. Kravitz, "APWCA is dedicated to decreasing the rate of lower limb amputation and decreasing the morbidity from chronic wounds. It's estimated that 50% to 80% of the amputations performed in the United States are preventable. Health care professionals working as a team can help bring that number down to size."
BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP
MEMBERSHIP IN APWCA helps wound care professionals enhance their education while they network with colleagues from various disciplines on both the national and local levels. Benefits of membership in APWCA include:
* subscription to the journal Advances in Skin & Wound Care
* subscription to the association's semiannual newsletter, Synergy
* biweekly E-mail alerts from Advances in Skin & Wound Care containing the latest news from the skin and wound care industry
* reduced rates for regional and national seminars.
In addition, APWCA may periodically offer members the opportunity to purchase texts, journals, equipment, or other materials at a discount.
APWCA provides a voice for all those who manage patients with wounds. APWCA accomplishes this by being a resource of information on wounds for patients with chronic wounds, their caregivers, and the public at large.
The association endorses Advances in Skin & Wound Care, a bimonthly, peer-reviewed, multidisciplinary journal from Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (http://www.woundcarejournal.com), as well as the journal's associated conference, the Clinical Symposium on Advances in Skin & Wound Care: The Conference for Prevention & Healing (http://www.symposiumonwoundcare.com).
Supported by an educational grant from HEALTHPOINT, Ltd.
APWCA'S 2003 ANNUAL SYMPOSIUM IS COMING UP
The American Professional Wound Care Association's (APWCA) annual symposium provides wound care professionals with a balance of general lectures and smaller breakout sessions. The meeting provides high-quality education presented by a nationally recognized multidisciplinary faculty.
FIGURE
The first annual symposium was held in suburban Bucks County, PA, in April 2002. More than 200 professionals gathered to hear lectures from a variety of speakers, including lectures on techniques in plastic surgery for limb preservation through flaps and grafting; the importance of collaboration among academia, industry, and government; nutritional factors in wound healing; and pain management.
According to Steven R. Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA, executive director of APWCA, "the success of last year's symposium had the association seeking a larger venue to accommodate the anticipated increase in the number of participants and industry sponsors in 2003." The site chosen, the Hilton Philadelphia Airport Hotel, is convenient for attendees flying in, taking the train, or driving, and it is only minutes from downtown Philadelphia.
A highlight of the 2003 Symposium will be a lecture by Richard Siderits, MD, FAPWCA, on the past, present, and future of wound care. Dr. Siderits is the project leader for a history of medicine Web site at Yale University, http://info.med.yale.edu/library/historical/siderits.htm. "We're excited to have Dr. Siderits, a talented pathologist, present at the conference," said Robert Gunther, DPM, FAPWCA, president of the APWCA. "Through computer-enhanced technology, he will present morphing images of wound healing integrated with new computer modeling techniques that have never been seen before."
As with last year's symposium, members of the APWCA may attend a special event: a full-service cocktail reception on Friday evening, March 28. The annual membership meeting, open to all attendees, will be held Saturday afternoon, March 29.
An abbreviated version of the program is available in this newsletter. For the full brochure, visit APWCA's Web site at http://www.apwca.org or contact the association office at 215-364-4100, fax: 215-364-1146, or E-mail: [email protected].
APWCA 2003 Symposium Wound Care and the Related Sciences
March 27 - 29, 2003
Hilton Philadelphia Airport Hotel
Philadelphia, PA
Jointly sponsored by Temple University School of Medicine, Albert J. Finestone, MD, Office for Continuing Medical Education, and the American Professional Wound Care Association.
This program is offered in collaboration with Temple Univerity Institute on Aging; Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine, Philadelphia, PA; Capital Health System, Trenton, NJ; and Saint Mary Medical Center, Langhorne, PA.
Scientific Program
THURSDAY MARCH 27
8:00 am - 1:00 pm
External Fixation (5 CME); Course #1
Guido LaPorta, DPM, FAPWCA
1:30 - 6:30 pm
Plastic Surgery Lecture (5 CME); Course #2
Part 1 of 2; attendees may attend the second part of this course, Plastic Surgery Course Wet Lab
David Novicki, DPM, FAPWCA, assisted by Jason Miller, DPM, FAPWCA
Session A
(3 credit hours)
2:30 - 3:30 pm
Vacuum Assisted Wound Closure
Kathleen Satterfield, DPM, FAPWCA
3:30 - 4:30 pm
Bioengineered Skin Replacement, Wound Bed Preparation
William Marston, MD
4:30 - 5:30 pm
Osteomyelitis and the Use of Antibiotic Beads
Richard Rosen, DPM
FRIDAY, MARCH 28
Choose either Session B, C, D, or E
Session B
(3 credit hours)
8:00 - 11:00 am
Plastic Surgery Course Wet Lab
(Plastic Surgery Course Lecture required; participants must supply their own instruments [ie, scalpel, forceps, needle holder, and suture scissors,])
David Novicki, DPM, FAPWCA Stephen Harlin, MD, FAPWCA Jason Miller, DPM, FAPWCA
Session C
(3 credit hours)
8:00 - 9:00 am
Vacuum Assisted Wound Closure
Kathleen Satterfield, DPM, FAPWCA
9:00 - 10:00 am
Bioengineered Skin Replacement, Wound Bed Preparation
William Marston, MD 10:00 - 11:00 am
Osteomyelitis and the Use of Antibiotic Beads
Richard Rosen, DPM
Session D
(3.25 credit hours)
7:45 - 9:00 am
Ostomy and Sacral Wounds Treatment and Prevention of Sacral Wounds
Cynthia Fleck, RN, BSN, ET, DAPWCA; June Partyka, RN, CWOCN, DAPWCA; Mary Ellen Crane, RN, CWOCN, DAPWCA
9:00 - 9:45 am
Venous Stasis Ulcers, an Algorithm Update
Maryanne McGuckin, Dr.ScED, MT, FAPWCA
9:45 - 10:00 am
Questions and Answers, Case Review
AM faculty panel
10:00 - 11:00 am
Making Cost Effectiveness Work for You and Your Patients
Laura Bolton, PhD, FAPWCA
Session E
(3 credit hours)
8:00 - 10:00 am
Biomechanics and Effects of Partial Amputation on the Diabetic Foot: Shoes, Bracing, and Off-Loading Techniques
Nancy McGuire, LPT, DAPWCA; Steven Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA; James McGuire, DPM, PT, FAPWCA; and Kendrick Whitney, DPM, FAPWCA
10:00 - 11:00 am
Making Cost Effectiveness Work for You and Your Patients
Laura Bolton, PhD, FAPWCA
FRIDAY, MARCH 28
11:50 am - 7:00 pm
(6 credit hours)
11:50 am - 12:00 noon
Opening Session/Welcome
Robert Gunther, DPM, FAPWCA; June Partyka, RN, CWOCN, DAPWCA; and Steven Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA
12:00 noon - 12:40 pm
Support Surfaces for the 21st Century
Cynthia Fleck, RN, BSN, ET, DAPWCA
12:40 - 1:15 pm
The Charcot Foot: Over 100 Years of Progress
Lee Sanders, DPM
1:15 - 1:35 pm
Genetically Associated Nephropathy with Diabetes Type 1-Current Research
Kathryn Ewens, PhD
1:35 - 2:20 pm
Tissue Sealants and Adhesives: Are These Viable for Management of Chronic Wounds?
Dean Toriumi, MD
2:20 - 2:30 pm
Speakers Panel Question and Answer
2:30 - 3:15 pm
Exhibits
3:15 - 3:55 pm
Use of Symphony and Restore Patch
Guido LaPorta, DPM, FAPWCA
3:55 - 5:10 pm
Involuntary Weight Loss, Wound Healing, and Optimal Nutrition Intervention
Nancy Collins, PhD, RD, LD/N, FAPWCA
5:10 - 5:20 pm
Speakers Panel Question and Answer
5:30 - 5:50 pm
Wound Prevention and Care in the Developing World
Neil Donohue, DPM, FAPWCA
5:50 - 6:15 pm
Amputations, Case Studies Demonstrating Preventable Limb Loss
Steven Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA
6:15 - 7:00 pm
Grande Finale Lecture: Comprehensive Wound Care
Adrianne P.S. Smith, MD
7:00 - 8:30 pm
APWCA Membership Reception in Exhibit Area (top-shelf reception)
SATURDAY, MARCH 29
8:00 - 11:45 am
(3 credit hours)
8:00 - 8:40 am
Infections and Antibiotic Update
Patrick Aufiero, MD, FAPWCA
8:40 - 9:00 am
Epidemiology of Diabetes and Diabetic Foot Ulcers
Robert Frykberg, DPM, FAPWCA
9:00 - 9:20 am
Research and Human Biological Data Interchange (HBDI)
Janice Sowinski, MS
9:20 - 10:00 am
Coffee Break in Exhibit Area
10:00 - 10:30 am
Venous Insufficiency
William Marston, MD
10:30 - 11:00 am
Pressure Ulcers
Larry Lavery, DPM
11:00 - 11:40 am
Cardiac Disease and the Diabetic Patient
Steven Goldsmith, MD
11:40 - 1:30 pm
Lunch in Exhibit Area
12:30 - 1:30 pm
Annual Meeting APWCA Membership
Open to all attendees
1:30 - 5:30 pm
(4 credit hours)
1:30 - 2:30 pm
Diabetes, Endocrine Control, Pump Therapy
H. Howard Goldstein, MD
2:30 - 3:15 pm
Vascular Compromise, What Is Salvageable? What Is Not?
Daniel Lee, MD
3:15 - 3:45 pm
Diabetic Foot Ulcer Treatment Guidelines
Robert Frykberg, DPM, FAPWCA
3:45 - 4:30 pm
Wound Care, A Retrospective and Prospective View-The Past, Present, and the Future, Including Morphing Images of Wound Healing
Richard Siderits, MD, FAPWCA
4:30 - 5:30 pm
Medical Legal Issues, HIPAA Privacy Regulations, and Ethical Questions
Moderated by Barry Block, DPM, JD; Mary Ellen Crane, RN, CWOCN, DAPWCA; Robert Frykberg, DPM, FAPWCA; Steven Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA; James McGuire, DPM, PT, FAPWCA; David Novicki, DPM, FAPWCA; June Partyka, RN, CWOCN, DAPWCA; and Richard Siderits, MD, FAPWCA
5:30 - 5:35 pm
Closing Remarks
Robert Gunther, DPM, FAPWCA, and Steven Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA
ACCREDITATION
A maximum of 26 continuing-education credit hours is offered. Detailed information on accreditation for physicians, podiatrists, nurses, and other fields is available on the APWCA Web site, http://www.-apwca.org.
For more information, contact APWCA, 853 Second Street Pike, #A-1, Richboro, PA 18954; phone: 215-364-4100; fax: 215-364-1146; E-mail [email protected]; Web site: http://www.apwca.org
MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES
PHYSICIANS AND ALLIED health care professionals who manage patients with chronic wounds may apply for membership in APWCA. This includes diabetologists/endocrinologists, general surgeons, geriatricians, infectious disease specialists, internists, wound care nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nutritionists, orthopedists, pedorthists, physical therapists, plastic surgeons, podiatrists, and vascular surgeons.
Membership is stratified according to discipline and educational background. The 3 membership categories and corresponding qualifications are:
* Fellow-A Fellow of the APWCA is (1) a physician member who is board-certified in his or her field of specialty, (2) a physician member who is board-certified in wound care, or (3) any member with a PhD. The credential is designated FAPWCA.
* Diplomate-A Diplomate of the APWCA is any nonphysician health care professional-such as a registered nurse, nurse practitioner, or physical therapist-who is board-certified in wound care. The certifying board must be recognized by APWCA's board of directors. The credential is designated DAPWCA.
* Associate-An Associate of the APWCA is any member not boardcertified and not holding a PhD. The credential is designated AAPWCA.
The 3 membership designations have equal rights and privileges within the APWCA; all can participate on committees and board activities and can hold positions within APWCA.
Steven R. Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA, executive director of APWCA, noted that podiatrists who want to become members of APWCA may do so through a grandfathering pathway, but only through June 16, 2003. "Those accepted will be considered charter members and will not be required to submit cases demonstrating their experience in wound care," he said, "nor will they be responsible for any additional application fees associated with submitting materials for review." These elements may become part of the application process after June 16, 2003.
Members of APWCA are required to maintain continuing education in the area of wound care by attaining at least 21 credit hours in wound care every 3 years. The seminar must be organized either by the APWCA or by an organization approved by APWCA's board of directors, such as a university, the annual Clinical Symposium on Advances in Skin & Wound Care, the annual American Diabetes Foot Council meeting, and other conferences sponsored by recognized wound care organizations. Members may inquire whether a particular meeting is recognized by APWCA and, if not, submit the program to the board of directors for review prior to the meeting date. The conference program, faculty, and the name of the sponsoring organizations must be submitted for review no less then 3 months prior to the conference. Members may also maintain their active status by publishing a scientific wound-related article in a peer-reviewed, indexed journal approved by APWCA's credentials committee and board of directors. Preferably, the journal should be listed in the National Library of Medicine's Index Medicus and MEDLINE databases, as is Advances in Skin & Wound Care.
INSURANCE INITIATIVE
IT'S NO SURPRISE THAT "being able to dispense the highest level of patient care is a primary concern for the wound care professionals who are members of APWCA," said Steven R. Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA, executive director of APWCA. "Yet they often find themselves hampered by the manner in which insurance carriers cover services and supplies."
With this in mind, APWCA has created an insurance initiative designed to promote public awareness of health care issues and how they relate to wound care.
APWCA is not a lobbying organization, however. It has taken on the insurance issue as part of its educational directive. The association believes that it can serve as a conduit through which its educational resources can inform the public on all aspects of the insurance issue. "An informed public can be dynamically involved in open discussions about efforts to make effective decisions and initiate changes that will improve the delivery of wound care," noted Obasi Chukwunenye, MD, FAPWCA, chairperson of APWCA's Insurance Committee.
He said that in 2002, APWCA identified its members' top areas of concern surrounding health care insurance coverage. They are:
* global fees that are not appropriate for wound care
* length-of-stay regulations that do not consider patients' comorbid conditions
* inefficiency associated with the need for too much documentation of services
* indiscriminant disallowance for needed services and supplies (including denial for payments after approval for services was attained) without accountability and impunity
* the need to improve nurse-patient ratios
* the need to reform home health care rules and regulations that impede the dispensing of care
* reduced fee schedules, which impact all of the above.
These points present an overview of many factors that, at some point, must be addressed to repair an overloaded health care delivery system. APWCA believes that mainstream media can be utilized to bring the public into this discussion and to explain that these factors affect all of us and our families. As baby boomers become older, this large population should realize that decisions that address these issues directly affect them and their quality of life.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Steven R. Kravitz, DPM, FAPWCA Executive Director
Robert Gunther, DPM, FAPWCA President
June Partyka, RN, CWOCN, DAPWCA Vice President
George Morgan, DPM, AAPWCA Secretary
Daniel Worden Treasurer
MEMBERS AT LARGE
David Brotman, MD, FAPWCA
Mary Ellen Crane, RN, CWOCN, DAPWCA
Steven Goldstein, DPM, FAPWCA
Susan Doan-Johnson
Brenda LaBoda, RN, AAPWCA
Edward J. McGehean
Federico Peguero, MD, FAPWCA
OF INTEREST TO WHOM?
* Primary Care Physicians
* Vascular Surgeons
* Orthopedic Surgeons
* Plastic Surgeons
* Podiatrists
* Nurse Practitioners
* WOC Nurses
* Physical Therapists
* Diabetologists
* Dietitians
* Certified Pedorthists and Orthotists
WANT TO LEARN MORE?
For more information about the APWCA, visit the Web site http://www.apwca.org. Or contact the APWCA at [email protected], (p) 215-364-4100, (f) 215-364-1146.