Be it the Guru Speak section written by Dr. The current edition of our journal brings you a variety of interesting and academically stimulating articles. The article has open access and is available as a quick link on the ISBI website I urge all our readers to read the guidelines themselves and also forward the link to their colleagues, team members, juniors, and seniors involved in burn care. The practice guidelines focus on a wide variety of topics ranging from organization and delivery of burn care to antibiotic stewardship to rehabilitation and quality improvement. Michael Peck MD coordinated this gargantuan task, with inputs and ideas flowing freely and it was an enjoyable and great learning experience for all the authors involved in the project (yours truly being one of them)! These guidelines, though applicable for all settings, are focused on burn care in resource-limited settings and recognize the current best and most cost-effective methods of treatment. It is a commendable academic work with inputs from burn care specialists from across the world. This was initiated by and completed in the tenure of the immediate past President of ISBI, Dr. Recently, the International Society of Burn Injuries (ISBI) published the ISBI Practice Guidelines for Burn Care.
Hopefully, some decrease was noted in cracker burn incidence in burn units across the country. Many burn units across the country ran their own safe Diwali campaigns in schools and society at large. Unfortunately, the burn aspect of the problem which occurs regardless of the type of fire that is lit remains, and emphasis on safety should be paramount.
The call was to reduce the bursting of firecrackers and choose to light lamps instead to reduce noise and smoke pollution. It was heartening to see a tendency to enforce an eco-friendly Diwali this year by the various social media and infomercial agencies on television and radio. A dilemma between doing what is best for the patient and doing what is right by consent… “Consent” makes for an interesting topic to read on. Adding the insult of surgery to this injury seems unacceptable to them which brings to the fore the age-old ethical and moral dilemma of whether the burn surgeon can take matters in his or her hand and enforce that decision on the relatives, knowing that it can improve the chances of survival. Economic reasons apart, most patient caretakers see burn injury as a major physical trauma. Among many of the reasons often cited for failing to do so, one of them is nonconsent for surgery by the relatives of the patient. However, this practice of burn wound excision finds few followers in burn units in our country.
However, none of them has been shown to reduce mortality rates. The advent of newer modalities of treatment and advanced wound care products has helped reduce the number of dressing changes or the pain associated with dressing. It has been shown to be one of the few interventions which can have an impact on mortality statistics. More than half a century back, it was proved and accepted beyond doubt that early excision of the burn wound is the standard of care in burn injuries. It is a great pleasure to write this editorial again and help showcase the best burn work of our country. Season's greetings to all, dear colleagues and seniors. In the Bengali classic song “Eka” written by revered Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore in 1905, the words “Ekla Chalo Re” inspire and urge one to tread fearlessly on one's path and one-mindedly pursue it alone even if others do not heed your call to join in.