Lesson 1Assessing exudate, odour, peri-wound skin condition, and wound edge morphologyCovers detailed checking of discharge, smell, skin around the wound, and wound borders. Connects observations to infection, softening, poor blood flow, and pressure issues. Helps nurses use steady terms and records for team talks.
Discharge amount, colour, and thicknessTelling apart clear, bloody, pus-filled dischargeSmell timing, strength, and likely causesSkin around wound softening, redness, and rashWound border shape, undercutting, and hard skinStandard words for describing local observationsLesson 2Characterising tissue types: granulation, necrotic, slough, callus — identification and documentationShows how to see and feel the difference between healthy granulation, dead tissue, slough, and callus in diabetic foot wounds. Focuses on exact descriptions, percentage guesses, and what they mean for recovery and cleaning plans.
Normal skin, new skin tissue, and scar tissueHealthy tissue colour and feelSlough look, texture, and stickinessDry and wet dead tissue, hard scab, and gangreneHard skin buildup at pressure spotsNoting tissue type percentages in recordsLesson 3Vascular assessment for lower extremity wounds: palpation of pulses, capillary refill, ABI, TBI, toe pressuresDeals with simple blood flow checks for lower limbs in diabetic patients. Includes feeling pulses, capillary refill time, ankle-brachial index, toe pressures, and understanding limits in hardened vessels and mixed conditions.
Looking for colour, hair, and skin changesFeeling foot and back leg pulsesCapillary refill and leg warmth checksDoing and reading ABI in diabetesToe pressures and TBI for hardened arteriesWhen to send for blood flow scans or specialist adviceLesson 4Infection and inflammation recognition: local vs systemic signs, using IDSA/International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) criteriaCenters on spotting infection and swelling in diabetic foot wounds. Tells apart harmless bugs from real infection, looks at local and whole-body signs, and uses IDSA and IWGDF rules to rate seriousness and decide actions.
Normal healing swelling versus infectionLocal signs in numb and poor blood flow tissueWhole-body signs and sepsis warningsIDSA and IWGDF infection gradingWhen to take samples and scansUrgent send-off rules for limb-danger casesLesson 5Relevant medical history and social determinants: glycaemic control, comorbidities, mobility, footwear, living situation, access to transport and careLooks at key health background and social factors affecting diabetic foot wounds. Highlights blood sugar control, other illnesses, movement ability, shoes, home setup, and getting to transport and wound care services on time.
Focused diabetes and treatment backgroundHeart, kidney, and nerve illness companionsMovement limits and fall or injury historyShoe type, fit, and wear marksHome safety, help, and self-care abilityTransport, money, and wound care accessLesson 6Standardised wound assessment frameworks (SITE, TIME, WoundBed, and Bates-Jensen)Introduces main wound checking systems used in diabetic foot care, like SITE, TIME, WoundBed, and Bates-Jensen. Compares parts, scoring, and how they aid watching progress and team talks across disciplines.
Aim of structured wound checking toolsSITE system parts and scoringTIME system for preparing wound baseMain items in the WoundBed scoringBates-Jensen Wound Assessment summaryPicking and using a system in daily workLesson 7Documentation standards and wound photography: consent, consistent lighting, orientation and measurement recordingOutlines top practices for written records and wound photos. Includes agreement, privacy, placing, light, scale use, and steady setup for reliable comparisons and legally sound files.
Key parts of wound record-keepingLegal and moral sides of recordsGetting and noting photo agreementStandard patient placing and markersLight, focus, and measurement scale useSafe keeping and tagging of wound picturesLesson 8Pain assessment in neuropathic and ischaemic feet: scales and bedside techniquesLooks into pain checking in nerve-damaged and poor blood flow diabetic feet. Reviews pain scales, words, and simple bed checks that tell nerve burning pain from rest pain due to poor flow, guiding pain relief and referrals.
Common pain types in diabetic foot problemsNumber and picture pain rating scalesNerve pain words and screening toolsSigns of poor flow and night rest painChecking pain during dressing swapsNoting pain reaction to treatmentsLesson 9Neuropathy evaluation: monofilament testing, vibration (tuning fork), pinprick and proprioception testsSets out planned nerve damage checks in diabetic feet using monofilament, vibration, pinprick, and position sense tests. Stresses method, scoring, and how feeling loss changes risk and patient teaching needs.
Screening questions for nerve symptoms10 g monofilament spots and useVibration check with tuning fork methodPinprick and heat sense testsPosition sense and balance checksRisk grading based on feeling lossLesson 10Measuring wound dimensions, depth, and tunneling: tools and techniques (ruler, tracing, photography)Gives hands-on ways to measure wound length, width, depth, and tunnels. Compares paper rulers, probes, outlines, and digital photos, stressing germ control and steady method among checkers.
Picking clean, one-use measuring toolsStandardising length, width, and clock positionsSafe depth and tunnel probing methodUsing wound outlines and plastic templatesClinical photos for ongoing comparisonsRecording sizes and changes over time
