ADDRESSING SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH PRODUCT CHOICE

Accel Heal

CHRONIC WOUND MANAGEMENT PRESENTS AN UNSUSTAINABLE FINANCIAL, BUT ALSO ENVIRONMENTAL, BURDEN.

Treating hard-to-heal wounds with Accel-Heal Solo would help to meet NHS initiatives aiming to reduce the financial and environmental burden of hard-to-heal wounds. Embedding Accel-Heal Solo into treatment pathways for these wounds:

  • Increases the healing rates – reducing the number of wounds being treated
  • Speeds up the time to healing
  • Reduces the overall number of dressings required, and
  • Reduces the nursing time needed and the carbon emissions from travel associated with nursing visits

 

CURRENT WOUND MANAGEMENT APPROACHES ARE NOT FINANCIALLY , NOR ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE

In the UK, wound management costs the NHS £8.3 billion a year and affects 3.8 million adults annually,1,2 with wounds that fail to heal accounting for two-thirds of this cost.2 Over a 12-month period, 48% of diabetic foot ulcers, 40% of pressure ulcers, and 63% of venous leg ulcers will remain unhealed. This leads to a vast utilisation of healthcare resources, both in the community and in secondary care, all of which contribute significantly to the unsustainable cost of care.2

The climate crisis is also an ongoing global problem.4 In 2019, the Healthcare Without Harm report estimated that the NHS accounts for 5.4% of all UK carbon emissions, 60% of which is related to the use of equipment and consumables.5 In the UK, in respect of unhealed wounds alone, it is estimated that over 250 million wound dressings are changed every year, on average every 3 days3, at a cost, for the dressings alone, of £350 million.2 Additionally, most wound care is delivered within the community incurring considerable travel, adding to carbon emissions2,4

 

BY INCORPORATING ACCEL-HEAL SOLO INTO CARE PATHWAYS, THE HEALING RATE OF A WOUND CAN BE INCREASED, WHICH REDUCES THE ENVIRONMENTAL AND FINANCIAL BURDEN OF WOUND CARE

Faster wound healing leads to fewer consumables being used and less travel being incurred by community nurses, specialist nurses and patients and, therefore, less waste. This generates greater environmental and financial sustainability.4

Studies have estimated that Accel-Heal can increase healing rates for stalled venous leg ulcers from 53% healed to 97% healed within 12 months.6 Observational studies consistently demonstrate that the use of Accel-Heal leads to a high proportion of healed wounds6-8, and a randomised controlled trial showed that Accel-Heal can heal wounds 3.6 weeks faster than standard care alone.9

Studies also demonstrate that Accel-Heal reduces the number of nursing visits needed per patient by 17 per year, a reduction of 34%.10 The reduction in visits was the main contributor to the estimated per-patient cost reduction of up to £936 per annum (per VLU) resulting in an 11% overall cost reduction.11

Accel Heal

We are committed to achieving net zero emissions in our carbon reduction plan.

Click here to download a copy of our Carbon Reduction Plan

OUR GREEN STATISTICS:

  • The Accel-Heal devices are recycled and our latest, independent, waste recycling report testifies that 83% of each device is recycled and demonstrates that recycling is ‘climate positive’.
  • For every device recycled, our carbon footprint is reduced by 137%. This is because the valuable components reclaimed from each device are reused in other devices, meaning less raw material needs to be mined or produced, in very carbon intensive procedures.
  • Being single-use means the device does not need to be decontaminated and reconditioned after each use, which, compared to some other EST devices, is significantly better for the environment.
  • Using Accel-Heal Solo ensures an uninterrupted 12 days of therapy which can be received within a patient’s home. This reduces the impact on the environment as there is no need for the patient to travel repeatedly to the clinic for treatment.
  • The electrode pads used with the device are off the shelf; are used with many other devices and measure just 45mm x 45mm. This means they produce significantly less waste than bespoke dressings and pads used with some
    other devices.

ACCEL-HEAL HAS BEEN DEVELOPED AND IS MANUFACTURED IN BRITAIN IN FACILITIES COMMITTED TO REDUCING CARBON EMISSIONS GOVERNED BY THE UK'S HIGH ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS, TRANSPORTATION COSTS AND EMISSIONS ARE KEPT TO A MINIMUM, REDUCING THE OVERALL IMPACT ON CLIMATE CHANGE.

References

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  1. Blackburn J and Ousey K. Wounds UK 2022;18(1):54–61
  2. Guest JF, et al. BMJ Open 2020;10:e045253
  3. Journal of Community Nursing “Survey to uncover wound care dressing behaviours and preferences” conducted August-September 2019
  4. Morton N, et al. Nursing Times 2022;118:8
  5. Health Care Without Harm, et al. Arup 2019 Health Care’s Climate Footprint. HCWH, Arup. Available at: www.arup.com/-/media/arup/files/publications/h/health-cares-climate-footprint.pdf Last accessed November 2023
  6. Ovens L. Wounds UK 2019;15(3):78–84
  7. Turner N and Ovens L. Wounds UK 2017;13(4):80–90
  8. Ovens L. Poster presentation at EWMA. 2019
  9. Guest J, et al. J Wound Care 2018;27(4):230–243
  10. Guest JF et al 2015. Wound Care2015; 24(12):574–580
  11. Posnett et al. 2020. Presented at EWMA 2020

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