Few studies have focused on the value that nurses place on
pressure ulcer prevention, even though values are a key determinant of a person's behaviour and actions. Previous studies have reported that the value that a nurse places on
pressure ulcer prevention is linked to the
skin care that they deliver. This article describes a study that was undertaken to determine the value that nurses place on
pressure ulcer prevention, which also identified how this value is formed. The participants in this study (n=16), were recruited from non-acute adult medical wards of 14 hospitals in one NHS trust, and a university. Data was gathered via semi-structured interviews and interpreted through Straussian grounded theory. The findings of this study show how the participants underwent a transition from placing a low to a high value on
pressure ulcer prevention and how this affected patient care. The key point in this transition appears to be an encounter with a patient with a high grade
pressure ulcer, which caused the nurses to reappraise their values. Looking after patients with
pressure ulcers seems to increase the value that a nurse places on
pressure ulcer prevention. The education that nurses receive on
pressure ulcer prevention only appears to alter their values when they have some experience of looking after patients with
pressure ulcers.