Teresa Conner Kerr, associate professor of physical therapy education, has been appointed as the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care (AAWC) liaison to the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP). She will represent the AAWC with the NPUAP on Capitol Hill as it lobbies for better care and prevention of pressure ulcers.
The National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP) is an independent not-for-profit professional organization dedicated to the prevention and management of pressure ulcers. Formed in 1987, the NPUAP Board of Directors is composed of leading experts from different health care disciplines— all of whom share a commitment to the prevention and management of pressure ulcers. The NPUAP serves as a resource to health care professionals, government, the public, and health care agencies; and welcomes and encourages the participation of those interested in pressure ulcer issues through utilization of NPUAP educational materials, participation at national conferences, and support of NPUAP efforts in education, public policy and research.
The goal of the NPUAP is to assist health care professionals in reducing the incidence and prevalence of pressure ulcers.
The National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel first convened with the mission of providing leadership in pressure ulcer prevention in November, 1987 at the invitation of Gaymar Industries, Inc. Recognizing the need for a credible panel of experts to raise awareness and provide information on pressure ulcers, the group began working in the areas of public policy, education and research.
The NPUAP, now assisted by multiple corporations and organizations, has become an internationally recognized entity. The collaboration of professionals, corporations, and governmental agencies offers a unique model for addressing major health care issues. The European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel and the Japanese Society of Pressure Ulcers have adapted the NPUAP model in establishing their organizations.
Legislatively, the NPUAP was instrumental in amending the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 in order to strengthen the bill’s language that related to quality of care for patients in long term care facilities. In 1989 the NPUAP was recognized by the National Academy of Science and was invited to participate in the formulation of the Health Objectives for the United States for the Year 2000. Accepting this invitation, members of the NPUAP worked successfully for inclusion of pressure ulcers in several sections of the Healthy People 2000 Objectives. The NPUAP was again asked for their consultation in drafting the Healthy People 2010 Pressure Ulcer Prevention Objective. This consultation resulted in a Healthy People 2010 objective which targets pressure ulcers as a major health concern.
The legislative credibility of the NPUAP is further documented by the invitation in 1990 to four of its members to serve on the Agency for Health Care Policy Research (AHCPR) panel for the development of guidelines for the Prediction, Prevention and Early Treatment of Pressure Ulcers in Adults, released in May, 1992. This panel of 13 was responsible for the creation of guidelines which also greatly influence the health care profession and the quality of care for patients in the acute, home and long term care settings. Seven members of the NPUAP were also invited to serve on the second AHCPR Pressure Ulcer Panel formed to create guidelines on the treatment of pressure ulcers. This guideline was released in December, 1994. Visit the AHCPR (AHCRQ) Web site for a full text of these guidelines.