Eileen Shepherd, Nursing Times

2-May-2009 10:28 am

I'm a retired nurse. I handed in my number about 20 years ago so I'm well out of radar range :-)
Getting older - -I wonder if experience of a tendency to urgency brings about an understanding on incontinence management??

12-May-2010 0:58 am

There are plenty of assessment tools available to assist nurses to make individual continence assessments.
I think its a responsibility of the nurse to educate themselves in this area..even if this means a little reading time or advice from continence services.
Unfortunately its one of those areas of nursing that doesn't often appeal to the modern nurse, but can make such a difference to patients and their quality of life.
It could be just testing a sample for infection or making a referal to to a continence service for more complex issues.
What i don't think nurses should do is ignore continence problems in the elderly or younger patients.