Be aware that a practitioner’s order for a wet-to-dry dressing is the same as a damp-to-dry or moist-to-dry dressing.
Do not use wet-to-dry dressing for clean granulating chronic wounds.
Wet-to-dry dressings are only appropriate for mechanical debridement in wounds that have necrotic or slough tissue.
Perform hand hygiene before patient contact.
Verify the correct patient using two identifiers.
Verify practitioner’s orders for dressing change.
Assess the size, location, and condition of the wound.
Determine the patient’s level of comfort using an organization-approved pain scale.
Assess need, readiness, and willingness for caregivers to participate in dressing the wound.
Assess risk factors for delayed wound healing.
Assess the patient for allergies, including sensitivity to tapes and other adhesives.
Place a disposable waterproof bag within reach of the work area. Fold the top of the bag to make a cuff.
Administer prescribed analgesic as needed before dressing change.
Reassess the patient's pain status, allowing for sufficient onset of action per medication, route, and the patient's condition.
Perform hand hygiene and don gloves. Don gown, mask, and eye protection, if risk of splashing from wound exists.
Position the patient comfortably. Drape the patient to expose only the wound site.
Remove tape, gauze wrap bandages, or ties securing the existing secondary dressing.
Using the nondominant hand, gently press down on the intact skin just outside the dressing edges to provide counter pressure, and then pull tape parallel to the skin toward the dressing.
If the dressing is over hairy areas, remove in the direction of hair growth.
If needed, obtain patient permission to clip hair from area.
Remove any excess adhesive from the skin using an adhesive remover wipe.
Use fingers or forceps to remove the secondary dressing. Then remove the primary dressing that is in contact with the wound bed. If drains are present, slowly and carefully remove dressings and avoid tension on any drainage device.
If a dry dressing adheres to the wound and mechanical debridement is not indicated, moisten with saline and remove.
If a moist-to-dry dressing, which is ordered for the purpose of mechanical debridement, adheres to the wound, alert the patient to the possibility of discomfort, and then gently remove the dressing. Use moist-to-dry dressing only when mechanical debridement is appropriate (i.e., when nonviable, necrotic tissue is present and no other debridement options are available).
If mechanical debridement is not the goal, consult with ordering practitioner to consider modifying the dressing order to specify use of saline-moistened gauze for wet-to-moist therapy.
Inspect the wound and periwound, noting color, size (length, width, and depth), drainage, edema, presence and condition of drains, any odor, and signs of healing.
Gently palpate wound edges, noting any bogginess, induration, or patient report of increased pain.
If the wound is healing by secondary intention, gently probe wound bed and inner edges with a moistened cotton-tipped applicator for presence of undermining, tunneling, or sinus tract(s).
Fold dressing with drainage contained inside, discard in a waterproof bag, and remove gloves inside out. With small dressing, remove gloves inside out over the dressing (Figure 1), and discard gloves with soiled dressing in a waterproof bag.
Perform hand hygiene and don clean gloves.
Reassure the patient as needed. Describe or explain the appearance of the wound and any indicators of wound healing or delayed wound healing.
Cleanse the wound.
Use a separate saline-moistened gauze for each cleansing stroke, or spray the wound surface with an appropriate wound cleanser.
Clean from the least to most contaminated area (Figure 2A).
Cleanse around the drain (if present), using circular strokes starting near the drain and moving outward and away from the insertion site (Figure 2B).
Use a separate dry gauze to blot the wound dry from the least to most contaminated area. If a drain is present, use circular strokes starting near the drain and moving outward and away from the insertion site.
Apply antiseptic ointment, if ordered, with cotton-tipped applicator or gauze over the incision.
Remove gloves and perform hand hygiene. Don clean gloves if necessary.
Apply dressing.
Dry dressing
Apply a layer of gauze over the wound as the contact layer, or primary dressing (Figure 3).
If drain is present, apply precut, split 4 × 4-inch (10.1 × 10.1-cm) gauze around the drain (Figure 4).
Apply additional layers of gauze, as needed.
Apply a thicker absorbent pad (e.g., abdominal [ABD] pad) (Figure 5).
Moist-to-dry dressing
Pour prescribed sterile solution (i.e., saline) on gauze or gauze wrap, or cut packing strip to be used to fill the wound bed. Wring out excess solution. If a packing strip is used to fill the wound, use sterile scissors to cut the amount of dressing needed to fill the wound. Do not let the strip touch the side of the bottle in order to avoid contaminating the packing strip.
Apply moistened gauze or packing material as a single layer directly onto the wound surface.
If wound is deep, loosely fill wound with additional gauze or packing material using sterile forceps until all wound surfaces are in contact with moist gauze, including any sinus tracts, tunnels, or undermining (Figure 6).
Make sure moist gauze does not overlap onto the periwound skin (Box 2). Do not pack the wound too tightly as it may cause wound trauma when the dressing is removed.
Apply dry sterile 4 × 4-inch (10.1 × 10.1-cm) gauze over the moist gauze.
Cover with an ABD pad (or similar product) or additional layers of gauze.
Secure dressing.
Apply tape to dressing edges in a window-pane fashion, ensuring sufficient contact with both intact skin and dressing. Use nonallergenic tape as needed.
Use Montgomery ties or straps.
Ensure that the surrounding skin is clean and intact.
Apply a skin barrier, such as a hydrocolloid, if needed.
Expose adhesive surface of the ties.
Place the ties on opposite sides of the secondary dressing directly onto the surrounding skin or skin barrier (Figure 7A).
Lace ties securely, avoiding excessive pressure (Figure 7B).
Use roll gauze or elastic netting.
Apply roll gauze circumferentially to secure secondary dressing (Figure 8).
Cut elastic netting and apply over secondary dressing to secure without using tape or other adhesives.
Label the dressing per the organization's practice with the date and time of application and the nurse's initials.
Assist the patient to a comfortable position.
Assess, treat, and reassess pain.
Discard supplies, remove personal protective equipment (PPE), and perform hand hygiene.
Document the procedure in the patient’s record.