Wound, ostomy, and continence nursing
Wound, ostomy, and continence nursing is a nursing specialty involved with the treatment of patients with acute and chronic wounds, patients with an ostomy, and patients with incontinence conditions. Nurses in this specialty are often referred to as wound, ostomy, and continence nurses. They use evidence-based knowledge and skills to manage the care of these patients, whose needs can often be complex. In the United States, certification is available for this specialty from the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing Certification Board; for example, the postnominals "CWON" represent the title of Certified Wound and Ostomy Nurse. There are additional organizations that offer varying levels of certification in this field.
In some countries, such as the Nursing in [the United Kingdom|United Kingdom], WOC nursing is not seen as its own specialty but instead falls into other specialties such as tissue viability nursing or stoma care nursing.