Wounds UK 2025: Digital Transformation, Data, and Technology in Wound Care

 Earlier this week, the IDR Medical team attended Wounds UK in Harrogate, gaining first-hand insight into the latest innovations, challenges, and data-driven strategies shaping wound care across the globe. 

 For MedTech leaders, the conference offered a clear view of where technology, clinical practice, and systemic reform intersect, and where opportunities lie to support clinicians and improve patient outcomes. 

Digital Formularies: Clinicians Driving Change

Digital formularies stood out as a clinician-led innovation. Nurse consultants weren’t just end-users, they created these formularies themselves on PowerPoint, embedding QR codes and resources to improve adherence and streamline workflows.

Benefits include:

• Standardization & efficiency: Reduces variation, improves procurement alignment, and allows real-time updates.
• Clinician empowerment: QR codes, hyperlinks, and single sources of truth make access fast and learning continuous.
• Patient-centered care: Transparent resources support self-management, inclusion, and equity.

A practical example from Doncaster & Bassetlaw showed woundcare pathway adherence improve from 30% to 80% after implementing a digital formulary, demonstrating the tangible impact of technology on frontline outcomes.

Data-Driven Insights: Supporting Frontline Research

A recurring theme was the power of big data in driving policy and improving patient care. Highlights included:

• Over 20,000 wound cases captured in UK & Ireland community datasets, soon expanding to 25,000.
• Chronic wounds are predominantly found in older adults with comorbidities, often in areas of deprivation.
• Clinicians are motivated to use data to improve care but often lack infrastructure or integrated tools to scale their insights.

Local case studies, such as Birmingham, illustrated stark disparities in wound care, from inconsistent data recording to cultural and socioeconomic factors affecting healing. Data-driven interventions are proving essential to reduce costs, improve healing, and prioritize early intervention.

Technology: From Smart Dressings to AI Predictive Models

The future of wound care is increasingly technology-enabled, combining diagnostics, monitoring, and analytics:

• Integrated assessment: Combining clinical signs, imaging, biochemical markers, and genetics for holistic decision-making.
• Remote monitoring: Smartphone apps, telemedicine, and cloud-based platforms reduce resource strain and enable continuous care.
• AI & predictive analytics: Machine learning models forecast healing trajectories and identify high-risk patients.
• Smart dressings: Embedded sensors provide real-time data, supporting proactive intervention and personalized care.

Case studies demonstrated early success. For example, AI-driven pressure ulcer prevention projects used sensor data to prioritize visits, enabling targeted care and freeing up clinician time for complex cases.

Bridging the Gaps: Pathways, Debridement and Standardized Care

Effective wound care also relies on structured clinical pathways and education:

• Debridement remains critical for infection management and wound bed preparation, yet knowledge gaps and inconsistent practice remain barriers.
• Standardized pathways, supported by best practice documents and multi-functional dressings, improve compliance, reduce antimicrobial spend, and enhance patient outcomes.

Examples from Doncaster & Bassetlaw and South Warwickshire highlighted reductions in unnecessary interventions, faster healing, and significant cost savings.

Strategic Takeaways for MedTech Leaders

Wounds UK 2025 underscored several opportunities for innovation and leadership:

1. Invest in digital solutions that standardize care, improve adherence, and enable real-time insights.
2. Leverage big data to inform policy, drive resource allocation, and identify health inequalities.
3. Support technology adoption through co-designed solutions, clinician training, and integrated systems.
4. Target interventions strategically, focusing on prevention, early detection, and high-risk populations.

Clinicians want to be part of the solution; they just need the right tools and infrastructure to make it happen.

Looking Ahead

From digital formularies to AI-driven smart dressings, Wounds UK highlighted that the future of wound care is data-driven, patient-centred, and technology-enabled. For MedTech leaders, supporting frontline innovation is key to delivering real-world impact, improving outcomes, and driving sustainable change in healthcare.

Let’s Talk Innovation. Connect with the IDR Medical team to discuss how data-driven solutions and emerging technologies can support your MedTech strategy.