Family praise for wound care nurses
A Birmingham man and his family have paid tribute to specialist wound care nurses who have successfully treated a long-term leg ulcer.
Ray Masser, of Alum Rock, had suffered from a wound on his left ankle since late 2017, despite many attempts at treatment in primary, community and acute care settings.
In June 2024, Ray was hospitalised with sepsis after his leg became infected. He returned home after treatment but the ulcer continued to worsen and his mobility became increasingly limited.
Finally, the former toolmaker started attending regular clinic appointments at the Ann Marie Howes Centre in Sheldon in April 2025 and has been both delighted and amazed by the improvement achieved with six months of consistent specialist treatment.
“My leg is brilliant, the nurses are brilliant, the service is brilliant!” said the 88-year-old grandfather.
“I'm so grateful to them, it was such a long time I had this problem, I'd lost hope, really. I often told the nurses to chop it off and I would make a new one in the shed!”
Ray's daughter Nicola said the lower limb wound care clinics - launched across the city in late 2024 - have given patients like her father ready access to the consistent specialist knowledge and treatment needed.
“We had begun to accept it wound would never heal, it had been such a long time,” she said.
“Then, finally, we were referred to see the tissue viability nurses. It was a bit of a case of 'well, we've tried everything else so we might as well!' But all I can say is 'wow, wow, wow!'” 
“Within just a few weeks of consistent treatment - making sure the wound was clean and showing Dad how to apply his compression hosiery himself - his leg started to show improvement. By the beginning of September, it was healed.
“It's a miracle, what these amazing nurses have done! I cannot thank them enough. Dad's leg has caused me many a sleepless night. The sepsis was a real awakening to me, as I know it can be a killer - I was always so worried he would get it again and not survive.
“Although dad never showed it much, I know he was worried himself at times that he would lose his leg or worse.
“The tissue viability team have been our saviour! A huge 'thank you' to all the nurses we've seen at the Ann Marie Howes Centre - you are truly angels and we can't thank you all enough!”
Tissue viability specialist nurse Anita Charters said: “We're very pleased with the results we've been able to achieve with patients like Raymond who are referred to the wound care clinics.
“It really is just about focussing on the fundamentals of wound care. The team tries to transfer their positive, 'can-do' approach to our patients to convince patients that recovery is realistic and enable them to self-care as much as possible.”
Background
Since November 2024, lower limb wound care clinics have been treating patients who have been referred because their wounds have not shown signs of healing; (a wound is categorised as “non-healing” if it has not started to heal within two weeks or has not completely healed within six weeks.)
Patients are assessed promptly and a treatment plan is followed, typically within six weeks. Promoting and teaching self-care is a key part of the approach, empowering patients to live as independently as possible and minimising the risk of exacerbation.
The clinics are run by a partnership of GPs and Birmingham Community Healthcare's tissue viability and district nursing teams, promoting patient independence and reducing pressure on acute healthcare services.