February is Preventative Health Awareness Month: Repositioning Pressure Injury Prevention in Canada

February marks Preventative Health Awareness Month — a timely reminder that our skin, the body’s largest organ, requires proactive protection across all care settings.

Pressure injuries remain a significant and often preventable source of harm within Canada’s health system.

At the Second Annual Canadian Pressure Injury Advisory Panel (CPIAP) Summit, national and international experts reinforced a clear message: preventing pressure injuries requires more than repositioning — it requires shifting mindsets and transforming culture to support practice excellence.

Prevention Starts Before Visible Injury

The 2025 Summit Report highlights several critical themes:

• Early and comprehensive risk assessment, including improved approaches for diverse skin tones

• Data-informed decision making, moving beyond reporting rates to driving quality improvement

• Standardized practices aligned with international guidelines

• Interprofessional collaboration across acute, long-term, and community care

• Engagement of patients and families as essential partners in prevention

The report emphasizes that prevention must begin the moment a person enters care — and continue seamlessly across transitions.

From Reactive to Proactive Care

A recurring theme throughout the Summit was the importance of cultural change: moving from reactive wound management to proactive skin wellness strategies. This includes:

• Implementing evidence-informed prevention bundles

• Ensuring timely access to pressure redistribution surfaces

• Addressing nutrition and underlying risk factors

• Leveraging technology responsibly to support early detection

• Strengthening policy frameworks and standardization across provinces and territories

Pressure injuries are complex. Many can be prevented through coordinated, evidence-based action.

A Call to Action

CPIAP remains committed to advancing national dialogue, policy development, knowledge translation, and advocacy to reduce pressure injuries across Canada. The Summit’s call to action encourages healthcare organizations, clinicians, researchers, and policymakers to collaborate in strengthening prevention efforts.

This Preventative Health Awareness Month, CPIAP invites healthcare leaders and frontline teams to reflect: What proactive strategies are in place to protect skin integrity in your setting?

Together, we can work toward a Canada united in pressure injury prevention and management.

To read the full Report on Repositioning Pressure Injuries: Shifting Mindsets and Transforming Culture to Support Practice Excellence, visit: https://www.cpiap.com/summit#meeting-proceedings