WCC case studies
WCC · Put your knowledge to work in context.
Wound Care Certified (WCC) is a professional credential for clinicians who assess, treat, and prevent wounds - most often nurses, physical and occupational therapists, podiatrists, and advanced practice providers working in acute care, long-term care, home health, and outpatient wound clinics. Certification signals that a clinician works from a consistent, evidence-informed framework rather than habit: recognizing wound etiology, staging pressure injuries accurately, selecting offloading and compression appropriately, and documenting in a way that supports continuity of care. The WCC case studies are 5 cases and about 4,599 words.
1The Boggy Sacrum: Staging and Offloading With What You Have
R, 82, has been in a skilled nursing facility for 3 weeks after a hip fracture. He is incontinent of urine and stool, has a Braden score of 12, and refuses the bed, spending most of the day in a recliner.
884 words, about 4 min2ABI 0.72 and an Order That Says 'Apply Compression'
L, 74, has a 6 × 4 cm ulcer over the left medial malleolus present for 7 months. The left ankle is 26 cm in circumference versus 22 cm on the right, with 2+ pitting edema, hemosiderin staining, and lipodermatosclerosis.
894 words, about 4 min3A Hot Red Foot With a Negative X-ray
K, 58, has had type 2 diabetes for 19 years, A1c 10.4%, and absent 10 g monofilament sensation at 8 of 10 plantar sites. He has a 2.5 × 2 cm ulcer under the left first metatarsal head, depth to subcutaneous tissue, probe-to-bone negative, no odor, moderate serous drainage.
931 words, about 5 min4Six Weeks of Mupirocin and a Patient Who Refuses Debridement
P, 63, has a 5 × 3 × 0.8 cm venous ulcer at the left medial malleolus that has been open 14 months. For the past 6 weeks it has been treated with topical mupirocin.
873 words, about 4 min5Eight Weeks of No Change: Nutrition, Pain, and a Family With a Powder
T, 79, lives in assisted living and has a Stage 3 sacral pressure injury measuring 6.2 × 4.0 × 1.5 cm that has not changed in 8 weeks despite documented q2h repositioning and a properly functioning alternating-pressure mattress. The wound bed is clean and granulating.
1,017 words, about 5 min