On November 11, the 2025 Award Ceremony of the Science and Technology Award of the Chinese Nursing Association was held in Beijing. The project Intelligent Nursing Assessment and Intervention for Chronic Wounds, led by Professor Cai Fuman, Dean of the School of Nursing, won the Second-Class Award. This marks the highest-level scientific and technological honor ever attained by the nursing team of our university.
With the acceleration of population aging and the high prevalence of chronic diseases, approximately 1% to 2% of the global population suffers from chronic wounds such as pressure injuries (formerly known as pressure ulcers or bedsores) and diabetic foot ulcers. In China, the incidence of chronic wounds has also been on a steady rise, with the number of existing patients exceeding 13 million. Chronic wounds are characterized by complex pathogenesis, prolonged courses, and high recurrence rates. They not only pose a threat to patients' lives but also impose a heavy economic burden, emerging as an intractable challenge in the medical field. Therefore, it is particularly crucial to conduct objective, accurate, and early assessment of chronic wounds. Especially against the backdrop of shortages in hospital nursing human resources and the demand for home-based remote care, leveraging artificial intelligence technology to implement intelligent nursing assessment and further formulate targeted nursing intervention strategies has become imperative.
This project was jointly completed by Cai Fuman and Jiang Xiaoqiong from the School of Nursing, Lin Lulu and Wang Yu from the First Affiliated Hospital, and Chen Aihua from the Second Affiliated Hospital. By integrating infrared thermal imaging technology with artificial intelligence algorithms, the team overcame the limitations of traditional visual assessment, developed an intelligent assessment system for chronic wounds, and proposed personalized nursing intervention strategies—achievements that will exert a far-reaching impact on clinical practice of chronic wound care. To date, the research outcomes have been published in the form of more than 20 high-quality papers in prestigious domestic and international journals, including British Journal of Dermatology (IF=9.6), Journal of Advanced Research (IF=13.0), Mater Today Bio (IF=10.2), and Chinese Journal of Nursing; several of these papers have been selected as the "Top 100 Excellent Papers" by the Chinese Nursing Association. The team has secured 9 national invention patents and 7 utility model patents, with 2 patents already translated into industrial production. Additionally, it has compiled 3 international clinical practice guidelines on wound care and 1 academic monograph, and established an infrared thermography database containing over 40,000 chronic wound cases.
As a distinctive research direction of the nursing discipline in our university, chronic wound care boasts two Fellows of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN)—Cai Fuman and Chen Aihua. In recent years, under the leadership of Professor Cai Fuman, the university has established a Chronic Wound Care Research Center, built a nursing research platform capable of independently conducting basic research and artificial intelligence research, and innovated interdisciplinary talent recruitment, training, and research cooperation models. These efforts have successfully established our university’s leading position in chronic wound care research both domestically and internationally. Furthermore, relying on the International Enterostomal Therapy Nurse School approved by the International Enterostomal Therapy Association, the team has successfully organized 16 training sessions since 2009, nurturing over 370 outstanding international enterostomal therapists for 32 provinces, municipalities directly under the Central Government, autonomous regions, as well as Hong Kong and Macao regions across China. In addition, the team has applied its research findings to teaching practice, guiding students to win more than 10 national and provincial-level awards, including the First Prize of the "Challenge Cup" National College Students' Extracurricular Academic and Technological Works Competition and the Gold Award of the Zhejiang "Internet Plus" College Students' Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition.
The winning of this award represents a high-level and authoritative recognition of our school’s achievements in the field of chronic wound care research. Taking this as a crucial opportunity, our school will continue to focus on the actual clinical needs of patients, deepen the integration of nursing practice and scientific research, promote the transformation and application of research outcomes into clinical practice, continuously enhance the scientificity, professionalism, and precision of clinical nursing services, empower the high-quality development of the nursing profession with professional expertise, and make solid contributions to the overall improvement of clinical chronic wound care standards.
The Science and Technology Award of the Chinese Nursing Association is the most authoritative scientific and technological award in China’s nursing sector. It aims to recognize teams and individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the advancement of nursing science and technology in China, fully mobilize the enthusiasm and creativity of nursing professionals, and promote the development of China’s nursing discipline. Candidates for the award are nominated by provincial nursing associations across the country through rigorous selection processes under a quota system, and then undergo preliminary review, reexamination, and final review organized by the Chinese Nursing Association. This year, a total of 4 First-Class Awards, 14 Second-Class Awards, and 25 Third-Class Awards were conferred.
