Improving Nursing Assessment & Documentation of Pressure Injury for Patients with Dark Skin Tones

Early signs of pressure injury may be more difficult to detect on patients with dark skin pigmentation. Patients with dark skin tones may be at greater risk for more severe, full thickness pressure injuries than patients with light skin tones. Objective skin tone assessment, modifications in nursing workflows, and other quality improvement interventions were implemented. Objective skin tone assessment was completed by implementation of the Munsell Chart, which has been validated as an objective assessment of human skin tones. Between January 2022 and April 2022, 217 electronic medical records were reviewed. This covered 13 inpatient adult and pediatric units.  As of April 2022, skin tone is recorded alongside monthly quality data. Deeper analysis, data collection and reporting, and targeted future interventions were just a few of the organizational impacts of this quality improvement project.