Welcome to yet another exciting issue of the Journal of Wound Care (JWC) Silk Road Supplement. Various articles feature, from different countries in the Asia Pacific region. The World Union of Wound Healing Societies (WUWHS) Congress (1–5 March 2022) concluded recently in Abu Dhabi. Congratulations to Gulnaz Tariq, the President of WUWHS, who managed to organise the largest conference in wound care, namely the ‘Wound Olympics’, during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a truly difficult time as some speakers and delegates tested positive and had to cancel their trips, while others were quarantined at the airports during the congress. The JWC also organised the WUWHS wound awards on 3 March 2022. Various clinicians, researchers and societies were recognised for their excellent work in the field of wound management. The Malaysian Society of Wound Care Professionals (MSWCP) won the gold medal in the Most Progressive Society category due to the work it has done in relation to education, certification, disaster wound management, COVID-19 programmes, and free home nursing in Malaysia and the region.
The General Assembly was convened on 4 March where five societies from four different countries had bid to host the WUWHS 2026 Congress. The bids were from Malaysia (MSWCP), Mexico, the US (Chicago and Miami) and Australia. The voting was carried out both online and in person, and Malaysia won the bid. The WUWHS 2026 Congress will be held in the picturesque Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. The theme for the congress is ‘Global paradigm shift: wound care specialty recognition’. This is something that many societies, countries and clinicians have been aspiring to achieve for the past 22 years, since the inaugural WUWHS Congress in 2000. Malaysia unveiled a strategic blueprint for the WUWHS which will culminate in the grand finale which is the 26th anniversary of this global society in 2026.
We sincerely hope that many wound care professionals will join this congress after the pandemic. Many speakers have become tired of the online programmes being organised during this difficult time. However, COVID-19 has taught us that we are now not limited by area or distance. We are able to reach many destinations remotely and frequently. This has increased the number of online courses, workshops, conferences, certification programmes and even practical skill sessions. The digital age has reached its turning point, whereby information technology has become of paramount importance in wound care and, more widely, healthcare itself. We must embrace the different platforms available.
We have an exciting list of articles, covering skin graft fixations, dermal templates, modified negative pressure wound therapy, risk categorisation after diabetic foot screening and burn management. We thank all the contributors to the journal. We beseech all the readers to submit more evidence-based studies so that we can have a wide variety of articles for publication.
Stay safe. Take care. God bless.