Wound Vac Scope of Practice

I did find this link that somewhat clarified my question http://www.kci1.com/cs/Satellite?blobcol=urldata&blobheadername1=Content-type&blobheadername2=Content-disposition&blobheadername3=MDT-Type&blobheadervalue1=application%2Fpdf&blobheadervalue2=inline%3B+filename%3D396%252F678%252FV.A.C.%2BTherapy%2B101%2BAwareness%2BBrochure.pdf.pdf&blobheadervalue3=abinary%3B+chorificet%3DUTF-8&blobkey=id&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobwhere=1226639760702&ssbinary=true

Usually no as assessment skills are required when checking the wound, it cannot be delegated to a CHHA. While a family member can be taught, it's really only a nurse (RN/LPN level skill)

Even the document you linked states home care nurse ( or qualified FAMILY member) not CHHA/HHA. This is skilled care not ADLs

My thoughts exactly. I didn't quite understand how a chha can do this when changing the drsg calls for an "assessment" and there is more risk involved with wound vac therapy. Also, I didn't mention that the clinic placed black foam directly over an exposed tendon. I called KCI and the clarified this should never happen and that there needs to be a nonadherent mesh barrier drsg in between this. This makes me question the competency of the podiatry clinic that applied it.

No, no. Where I worked the nurses did not teach vac application to family or caregivers per policy. Seems there is too much potential for things to go wrong. Heck, there are nurses trained and inserviced on vacs that still screw them up!

That said, generally skilled care can indeed be taught to family members, such as wound packing or IV administration. I think the wound vac exception falls more into the common sense category.

Thank you all for your responses. We will be discharging this patient and referring to another hha because this case has too much liability risk and poor caregiver/ family adherence to POC.