To understand how a wound is supposed to heal, search your knees. All evidence of the scrapes and scabs of childhood are likely long gone. That is because the human body is blessed with the incredible ability to heal damaged tissues.

But more than 5 million Americans suffer from chronic or non-healing wounds – a wound that does not heal in six to eight weeks with traditional wound care. These wounds not only don’t disappear without a trace, they can cause serious infections, illness and loss of a limb.

If your wound is not healing properly, you need expert care.

Healogics™ Inc. recently honored Hoag Wound Care Center with the Center of Distinction Award for clinical excellence for the fourth consecutive year. In addition, Hoag received the Robert A. Warriner III, M.D., Center of Excellence award. These prestigious national awards recognize Hoag for achieving outstanding patient outcomes for 12 consecutive months.

With a healing rate of 95 percent and an average healing time that is seven days faster than the national average, Hoag was one of only four California hospitals that qualified as a Center of Excellence.

These distinctions are a testament to our comprehensive team approach which brings together physicians, nurses and physical therapists, all trained in advanced wound care, to specifically tailor a treatment plan for each patient’s unique needs.

But our team can only help those patients who are referred to us or who know to seek expert help. If you are experiencing a diabetic foot ulcer, venous leg ulcer, a chronic wound from radiation therapy, or a skin injury that won’t heal, don’t ignore it. Even seemingly small diabetic foot wounds, if unrecognized or undertreated, can rapidly progress, resulting in infection, amputation and loss of mobility, and sometimes permanent disability.

With state-of-the-art treatments including debridement, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, dressing selection, special shoes and patient education, the center addresses total patient health. Our interdisciplinary model of care also includes infectious-disease management, physical therapy, occupational therapy, laboratory evaluation, nutritional management, pain management, diabetic education and radiology testing.

Our approach is comprehensive and our outcomes are impressive. But most importantly, Hoag is returning mobility and quality of life to patients whose wounds cause nearly constant pain.

That is why Hoag Wound Center opened a second location at Hoag Health Center Irvine on Sand Canyon to bring Hoag’s nationally recognized wound care services to patients in Irvine and the surrounding communities.

Our expansion is a response to the understanding that people everywhere suffer from non-healing wounds – and to the belief that with the right care, they don’t have to.

Dr. Michael Hurwitz is medical director of the Hoag Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Medicine Center.