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General product and reference information only; this page is not medical advice and does not describe clinical procedures. Wound care decisions follow a clinician’s assessment and local policy.
Short answer
A wound care pocket guide is a compact printed or PDF reference that groups skin and wound assessment, a treatment-planning framework and dressing-category chapters in one place. The 2023 McKesson WoundCare Companion Pocket Guide runs 131 pages and is the clearest published example. Because such guides come from a supplier with a product range, supply teams should check the issuer, edition and category names before adopting one.
Definition and scope
There is no regulatory definition of a “wound care pocket guide”; it is a publishing format. McKesson describes its guide as an “instructional Pocket Guide” provided “to assist you with the challenges of wound care”, focused on skin assessment, wound assessment, wound prevention, wound care resources and product selection guides for advanced skin and wound care (McKesson, 2023 edition, checked 2 November 2026).
Scope matters for readers. A pocket guide is a quick-reference layer over a facility’s own wound policy. It does not replace that policy, a formulary or a clinician’s judgement, and it is not a substitute for the instructions for use that come with each product. For the underlying product vocabulary, see what a medical dressing is and dressing versus bandage.
How a pocket guide is used in practice
The McKesson contents page shows the usual layout. The guide opens with clinical support and education (assessing the skin, assessing wounds, wound documentation tips, identifying a treatment plan, wound types), then prevention (advanced skin care, equipment), then treatment chapters by dressing category, and ends with wound cleansers and wound measuring guides.
Its treatment-plan page is a publisher’s organising chart rather than a protocol for any one patient: it groups the guide’s dressing categories under headings such as “minimal drainage” and “moderate to heavy drainage”. Readers should treat that as how this publisher organises its range, attributed to the publisher.
Types of content, and the compression chapter
The table below maps the chapters of the 2023 McKesson guide to the kind of content each holds. Every row comes from its table of contents.
| Section of the guide | What the chapters cover |
|---|---|
| Clinical support and education | Assessing the skin, assessing wounds, documentation tips, identifying a treatment plan, wound types |
| Prevention | Advanced skin care, equipment |
| Treatment: absorbent and moisture-management categories | Calcium alginate and gelling fiber, foam, hydrocolloid, hydrogel, specialty absorptive, bordered gauze, composite |
| Treatment: other dressing categories | Collagen, contact layer (silicone), medical-grade honey, hydrophilic wound dressing, non-adherent, transparent film and acrylic, Xeroform, negative pressure wound therapy, tape |
| Treatment: compression | Multi-layer compression bandage systems, tubular elastic bandage, tubular net retainer dressing, Unna boot |
| Reference tools | Wound cleansers, wound measuring guides |
Compression and “types of ace bandages”
People searching for the types of ace bandages are usually looking at the compression chapter. The guide separates four items: multi-layer compression bandage systems, tubular elastic bandages, tubular net retainer dressings and Unna boots. It describes tubular elastic bandages as providing “even compression and support”. No further stretch-class taxonomy is given in the guide, so none is invented here. For care of a reusable wrap see how to wash an ACE bandage; for related product pages see compression dressings, bandage wraps for wounds and the Tubigrip size chart.
Where it matters for labs, clinics and supply decisions
Category names in a guide are not regulatory classes. Under 21 CFR 880.5075 an elastic bandage is “a device consisting of either a long flat strip or a tube of elasticized material that is used to support and compress a part of a patient’s body”; it is Class I and exempt from premarket notification subject to the limits in 880.9 (eCFR, checked 2 November 2026). Under 21 CFR 878.4018 a hydrophilic wound dressing is “a sterile or non-sterile device intended to cover a wound and to absorb exudate”, also Class I and exempt subject to 878.9. These two entries say nothing about foam, collagen, honey or other categories in the guide, which are classified on their own records and should not be assumed to be Class I.
Checks before a team adopts a pocket guide
- Issuer. The McKesson guide is published by a distributor, and its treatment chapters carry manufacturer part numbers (MFR#), so it works partly as a product catalogue as well as a reference. Read it as the publisher’s document.
- Edition. McKesson also hosts an older 2020 edition of the companion guide (about 107 pages, with a different chapter structure; checked 2 November 2026) alongside the 2023 131-page guide. Confirm which edition a colleague is holding.
- Category versus product. Match each chapter to the product’s own regulatory record and instructions for use before relying on the category name.
- Local policy. Reconcile the guide’s framework with the facility’s wound policy and approved products. For sourcing context see wound care suppliers, non-stick sterile dressings and gauze types.
Common misunderstandings
- A pocket guide is a protocol. It is a reference; the McKesson algorithm is that publisher’s framework.
- Brand lists are neutral. Part-number lists reflect the issuer’s range.
- A category is an FDA class. “Foam” or “hydrocolloid” is a guide heading; FDA definitions apply to specific device types.
- One edition fits all. Editions differ in length and chapter structure, as the 2020 and 2023 McKesson files show.
FAQ
Is there a wound care pocket guide PDF?
Yes. McKesson publishes the 2023 WoundCare Companion Pocket Guide as a PDF (131 pages) on its medical-surgical site (checked 2 November 2026). Check the edition on the cover page before sharing a copy.
What are the types of ace bandages?
The FDA defines the elastic bandage by function: a flat strip or tube of elasticized material used to support and compress. The McKesson guide’s compression chapter separates multi-layer compression systems from tubular elastic bandages, tubular net retainers and Unna boots.
Does a pocket guide tell me which dressing to use?
It organises product categories under the publisher’s own headings. Choosing a product for a person is a clinical decision under local policy and is outside this page.
Sources
All sources below were checked on 2 November 2026.
- McKesson, WoundCare Companion Pocket Guide (2023 edition), checked 2 November 2026.
- eCFR, 21 CFR 880.5075 Elastic bandage, checked 2 November 2026.
- eCFR, 21 CFR 878.4018 Hydrophilic wound dressing, checked 2 November 2026.
