FROM LORI BOYLE, APN, CWS
focused on providing comprehensive care focusing on the whole person, hoping
to improve quality of life for the patients we see. In the 5 years that I have been
with Associates in Vascular Care I have enjoyed a true collaborative relationship
with Dr. Pennycooke that results in the best outcomes for our patients.
Q. What are some common misconceptions about wound care?
There are a few. I think one of the biggest misconceptions I encounter is the old
wives’ tale about “letting the air get to it”. Wounds do not need air. Evidence based
practice for wound care tells us that a moist environment and keeping wounds
covered leads to faster healing and reduced scarring. Another misconception is
that all wounds need antibiotics. Most do not. Antibiotics do not heal wounds. If
a wound is infected, of course antibiotics will treat the infection. But continuous
use of antibiotics, even over the counter antibiotic ointments can not only be
unnecessary but also lead to delayed wound healing. A third misconception is
that bandages should be changed frequently, even multiple times a day. In an
outpatient setting, most wounds need a daily dressing change or less. Depending
on the wound and the product I prescribe, some wounds only need the dressing
changed every two to three days, and in the case of venous leg ulcers weekly is
most often recommended.
Q. What do you hope to achieve by bringing attention to Wound Care
Awareness Month?
My goal in promoting Wound Care Awareness month is to let people know
Many people do not realize that wound care specialists exist. Chronic wounds in
up to date, evidence based treatment modalities in order to obtained the best
outcomes.
Q. What is the most rewarding part of your job?
The most rewarding thing about my job is seeing patients get better and regain
a piece of their life that they had been missing. This is true for both the wound
care work I do and for the vascular medicine part of my job. I cannot tell you how
months because their wound is healed.
them get their leg swelling under
control. Or walk pain free because we
treated their peripheral arterial disease.
Most of the patients we see, follow up
with us regularly, especially the wound
care patients, most of whom come in
weekly until their wound is healed. They
become like family, not just to me but to
the whole staff. We get to know about
them and their lives. We celebrate their
triumphs with them, and we hold their
have the best health care team with
whom I have ever worked. When our
patients are here, we want them to feel
like they are home.
Q. Tell me more about your background and what brought you to
Wound Care as a specialty.
I am a Jersey girl, born and bred! I earned my RN in 1997 from an old-fashioned
hospital-based nursing program at Christ Hospital School of Nursing in Jersey
City. In 2001, I moved to the Bayshore area and soon started working on a
campus of the hospital. I said sure! And since I seemed to be the only one in
one of the wound care nurses needed a day off. And that was it, I fell in love with
wound care. Once the Wound Center moved back on premises, I became part
of the regular staff and eventually a case manager, and wound care became my
primary focus a nurse.
Q. What brought you to Dr. Pennycooke and the Associates in Vascular
Care Team?
kid on the block in vascular surgery, fresh out of fellowship and a new panel
physician at the Wound Center. Around that time, I had just gone back to school
to work on my bachelor’s degree and eventually master’s degree in nursing to
become a nurse practitioner. After graduating, I moved on to practicing wound
care in Essex and Somerset counties. Little did I know, Dr. Pennycooke had
recently opened his own practice with an Ambulatory Vascular Center and was
looking for someone to join the practice with exactly my skill set, as wound care
and vascular medicine really do go hand in hand. When I called him, it was
like reaching out to an old friend. The best part is that when we met in person,
and it had been about two years since we had seen each other, we were both in
sync about our vision for the future and what we hope to do for this Monmouth
County community as health care providers. We really have a common vision
ASSOCIATES IN VASCULAR CARE HAVE TWO LOCATIONS: 1000 Route 35 South, Suite 301 in Middletown and 479 Route 520, Suite A103 in Marlboro.
To learn more, call 732-784-6550 or visit AssociatesInVascularCare.com.
/AssociatesInVascularCare.com