With demographics, an ageing population and faster hospital discharges against us, district nurses are likely to be faced with more complicated wounds that require specialist attention. With national and local guidelines, the restriction of cost implications, patient compliance and 'best practice' to achieve, the nurse can find the task of choosing the correct course of treatment a daunting one. Nurses must not only consider the patient holistically, assess the wound and the predisposing factors that may be present, but also prescribe an effective treatment while being aware of what effects the treatment may have and be prepared to justify their actions when called to task. This article takes one case study detailing a traumatic wound and follows through the whole assessment and evaluation process to demonstrate how all of these demands were met. Dressings used in the case study are Promogran, Actisorb Silver 220 and Tielle Plus manufactured by Johnson & Johnson.