Home Wound Care: A 14-Day Protocol That Doesn't Get Skipped

Day 1

Clean with saline (not hydrogen peroxide — peroxide kills the cells you need for healing). Apply primary dressing per nurse instructions. Cover. Mark the date with a sharpie on the dressing.

Day 2-3

Change dressing. Look at the wound: pink and shrinking is good. Yellow film is normal slough. Black tissue is dead and needs a clinician.

Day 4-7

Most wounds get smaller in this window. If the wound is bigger, redder, hotter, or smellier on day 4, call your nurse.

Day 8-14

The wound is in remodeling. New tissue is fragile. Don't pull dressings off dry — wet them first.

Call the nurse if

• Fever over 100.4 F.
• Red streaks moving away from the wound.
• Pus or foul smell.
• The wound stops getting smaller for more than 5 days.

What to keep on hand

Sterile saline rinse, gauze pads (4x4 most useful), foam dressings (for moderate exudate), medical tape (hypoallergenic), nitrile gloves, sharpie.

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