Major changes in wound care practices have occurred in recent years because of increased inquiry into the biology and physiology of wounds. Nurses are having difficulty keeping up with these changes which leads to knowledge being applied inconsistently in practice.

This study investigated what knowledge nurses use when practicing wound care, from a grounded theory perspective. By examining the social processes involved in nursing behaviour and the context from which these processes emerge, an explanation is given for the meaning of these experiences for nurses.

The substantive theory derived from this research informs nursing, its body of knowledge and future research.