Enabler

It has just occurred to me that this blog is the enabler that I have been searching for. It allows a discussion forum and international exchange of ideas. It can be a community of practice and aid in knowledge transfer. I can attach the simple tools, research summary, multimedia audio and video files to help others learn and teach how to do ABIs. My paper and Congress poster will be the development of the process and the appropriateness of using a blog as a medical education enabler.

Continuation of my ABI literature review

Here is the continuation of my literature review, which I have added to. There is some good stuff out there. ABI searches also pick up Acquired Brain Injury and other medical disorder abbreviations. Many references are cross referencing and the same authors are recurring. They often refer to best practice guidelines also which will help next week in my review. I have taken quotes from the literature and acknowledged the source. At a later stage I will write a summary of this literature search and best practice review.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/2753136/ABI-literature-review?secret_password=2jyoersmx7t37uqjpl24

Selective Needs and Goals

Here is my identified needs and goals for my selective. It shows the resources that the selective plans to produce. This is the presentation I gave at the second IIWCC weekend.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/2621348/Selective-Need-Goal?ga_first_uploads=1&ga_uploads=1&secret_password=ckznm69b1nz901922h2

Interprofessional contact

The IIWCC program brings together healthcare professionals, researchers and people from industry from a wide spectrum of disciplines with a passion about wound care. The program also brings together professionals from around the world. At the most recent weekend there were discussions led by groups who have been pioneering wound care in Iran and British Gayana. It highlights for us all the tremendous work to do in many parts of the world and the major healthcare benefits we enjoy in many Canadian, American and European countries. Today, I began reading a book Me to We by two young Canadian authors and role models called Craig and Mark Kielburger.

I look forward to hearing from other like minded professionals. I would like to learn of your experience in conducting ABIs and any challenges and obstacles in teaching others how to use this simple technique. This will help me truly understand constructing enablers and multimedia tools to make healthcare professionals more confident is using this essential assessment tool.

Purpose of my blog

I am part way through a course at the University of Toronto called the International Interprofessional Wound Care Course, IIWCC for short. I am not a healthcare professional although I have been working in healthcare since 1992. As part of my program I am writing a selective. The title of the selective is 'to demystify ABIs by developing an enabler with support materials for future development and publication.

An ABI is a Ankle Brachial pressure Index (or ABPI), which is a measure of vascular supply to the legs.

The purpose of the selective is to demonstrate the process in the development of the project and I have decided to use this blog to catalogue the development process and also to solicit feedback from other healthcare professionals involved in wound care. I welcome your comments. I plan to add to this blog each week and I would like to post questions, surveys and votes. Finally I plan to attach embedded video and audio links which will help healthcare professionals to conduct ABIs on their patients.

I live in Ontario, Canada.