For people living with an ostomy, leakage and peristomal skin complications (PSC) are common issues that often appear together. Better means of preventing these issues could improve the quality of life of these patients. The purpose of the research presented here was to identify and build a model of risk factors for PSC.

Risk factors were identified via discussion sessions with Coloplast’s internal ostomy care experts, the Coloplast Skin Expert Panel, the Global Coloplast Ostomy Forum (COF), and 18 national COF boards, collectively representing more than 400 ostomy care nurses from around the world. Risk factors were identified by these expert groups, analysed, clustered into categories, and discussed in several stages, resulting in the risk factor model for PSC, comprising three overall categories and their related risk factors (n=24). Consensus on the model was achieved using a modified Delphi process involving over 4000 experts within ostomy care from 35 countries. In parallel, a systematic literature review of risk factors for PSC was performed to identify primary literature supporting the model. Relevant articles published from 2000 until August 2020 were included in the review, and 58 articles were found to support 19 out of the total 24 risk factors. The risk factor model for PSC was ratified by the Coloplast Skin Expert Panel and the Global COF and holds potential to be included in guidelines for healthcare professionals and to be used as a tool in daily clinical practice.

This manuscript highlights commonly used pressure injury (PI) risk assessment instruments (scales) and other considerations that the clinician should contemplate for use in everyday practice to determine if their patient is at risk for a PI.

Objective This qualitative inquiry explored the meaning associated with diabetes for people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes who developed diabetic foot ulcer (DFU).

Methodology This qualitative study used a social constructivism and symbolic interactionism (SI) framework to guide the study design. The participants for this study were 30 adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes and a DFU who met the research criteria and attended a wound care clinic in Ontario, Canada, between April and August 2017.

Results Qualitative content analysis revealed three major subcategories that represent the core category (the meaning of diabetes) along with participants’ perception of having diabetes and its particular complication – 1) diabetes is a life-long disease that you need to live with, 2) diabetes can damage your body, and 3) diabetes can kill you slowly.

Conclusions The complexity of self-care and the consequences of unregulated diabetes influenced participants’ perception, meaning, motivation, actions and reactions to diabetes. Understanding that each person with diabetes is unique and may experience or are affected by the disease in different ways helps healthcare providers (HCPs) to better understand how to address each individual’s unique and complex needs.