Exploring the Impact of Evidence on Mattress Selection // Where does Adjunctive Therapy fit in the management of non-healing lower limb wounds

Karen is Professor and Director for the Institute of Skin Integrity and Infection Prevention, University of Huddersfield, Visiting Professor, Queensland University of Technology and the Royal college of Surgeons, Dublin; previous academic editor for Wounds UK. She is elected chair of the International Wound Infection Institute and the International Skin Tears Advisory Panel (Europe). Her clinical background is in orthopaedics and tissue viability. She has over 30 years’ experience in both clinical practice and in academia. She is widely published (in excess of 140 papers) and has edited 2 text books.

Barbara is Head of Pharmacy at the University of Huddersfield. She was appointed as Professor of Pharmaceutics at the University of Huddersfield in 2010. Following her first degree in Pharmacy at Queen’s University, Belfast, she registered as a pharmacist in 1990 and practised full-time in community pharmacy until joining Aston University in Birmingham in 1992 to undertake a Ph.D. Her PhD research project at Aston was in the pharmaceutics and drug delivery field, focusing on microencapsulation for delivery of biopharmaceuticals.

Following completion of her PhD studies in 1995, she was employed in various posts at Aston University, including lecturer and senior lecturer and was Director of the M.Pharm. programme prior to moving to the University of Huddersfield in 2010 as Professor of Pharmaceutics. During this time, she also became a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and supervised projects on the application of e-learning technologies in Pharmacy. She was also a Medici Fellow, specialising in driving forward innovation within the university sector and hold several patents in the pharmaceutical area. She has supervised over 20 Ph.D. students and on-going research programmes focus on chrontherapeutic delivery and delivery of antimicrobials, novel excipients for drug delivery, the mechanical properties of pharmaceuticals and excipients and the development of chewing gum delivery systems.

She has a number of successful collaborations with other universities, NHS and pharmaceutical industry leading to publications and development of new products.

Firstkind is a UK based founder and manufacturer of the innovative geko™ device – an advanced, clinically proven wound care therapy device. Through an innovative mechanism of non-invasive neuromuscular electrostimulation (NMES), the wearable geko™ device activates the calf and foot muscle pumps increasing venous, arterial, and microcirculatory blood flow, transporting oxygenated blood to the wound bed to promote wound healing in patients with chronic venous insufficiency and intermittent claudication. It also reduces oedema and maintains TCpO2 – promoting conditions to support wound healing.

Joy Tickle is a Tissue Viability Nurse Specialist a position she has held for over 29 years. She has implemented and lead a successful and award-winning tissue viability service within Shropshire and is currently working as the Tissue Viability Nurse consultant/Clinical lead with the recently developed Isle of Wight Tissue Viability Service.
Joy has 40 years’ experience working within the NHS, in which she has engaged with various aspects of the discipline whilst retaining her passion and focus on patient wellbeing. She qualified as a RGN in Stoke-on-Trent in 1987 and has worked within surgical /vascular departments, paediatrics, and ophthalmology and then worked as a District Nursing sister for 8 years. Her passion for wound assessment and management fuelled her desire to work within tissue viability She really enjoys the challenges of tissue viability and treating the variety of patient conditions and wound aetiologies that present.
Joy is passionate about the training and development of the next generation of nurses and have been proud to help by sharing her knowledge through publications, lecturing, and presenting, both nationally, internationally, and online. She is a member of various professional groups within tissue viability and sits on the editorial board of the BJN Tissue Viability Supplement.
Joy has achieved awards in Health and Social Care, Wounds UK Award, Helen Buckle Nursing Award, Dr Steven Hugh Award, BJN Award. Joy was a presenter of the BAFTA award winning TV programme Embarrassing Bodies offering specialist advice with regards to all aspects of tissue viability. In 2011 joy completed her MSc in Science (Advanced Clinical Practice) much to the relief of her 2 sons and her partner) .

Jasmine Tolson completed her Master's degree in Mechanical and Medical Engineering in 2023 and is working on a Knowledge Transfer Partnership with the University of Huddersfield and Essential Healthcare Solutions. Her project is focused on developing a standardised methodology to evaluate support surfaces for pressure ulcer prevention. Without standardising performance measurements, the ambiguity surrounding effective support surfaces will remain, limiting innovation towards a better solution. Therefore, her research aims to provide opportunities to rethink how support surfaces should impact pressure ulcer outcomes and improve quality of life.