<p>The theme of this issue of Wounds International is “wounds and wellbeing”. The articles included in the issue build on the work initiated by the international consensus document Optimising Wellbeing in People Living with a Wound – sponsored by Smith & Nephew – published in 2012. Although the concept is not new, the work involved in the document has led to a greater recognition of the importance of patient wellbeing and has helped to identify gaps in our understanding of how to address, evaluate, and optimise wellbeing for people living with a wound.</p>