The continence teams provide open referral systems. They run community bladder and bowel clinics and also provides support, advice and assessment of individual needs, with service users offered the choice of home, hospital or clinic as venue for their appointment.
Conditions treated include stress urinary incontinence (SUI); overactive bladder (OAB); mixed urinary symptoms; urinary retention; neuropathic bladder; enuresis; bowel dysnfuction, including incontinence and constipation.
In the east and north locality of Birmingham they also run a planned triage service on a rolling programme across the area inviting all women aged between 40 and 70 to attend an appointment if they have any concerns about bladder or bowel incontinence.
This proactive approach in a confidential sensitive subject is reducing the numbers of referrals made to secondary care for gynae / urology at later stages where earlier intervention is producing a reduction in symptoms in up to 80 per cent of referrals received.
Services provided at clinics:
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holistic assessment for diagnosis, treatment and evaluation
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bladder scanning
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urowflometry
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conservative treatments and interventions
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physiotherapy and biofeedback
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prescribed medication
Who is it for?
The service operates on an open referral basis. Patients are offered the choice of home, hospital or clinic for their appointment. Please note that referrals purely for containment products will not be offered a clinic appointment.
Who delivers it?
The service is delivered by specialist continence nurses, who deliver bladder and bowel clinics in community settings.
See below for information about clinics in your area.
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40 per cent of females wait up to eight years before seeking advice – don’t let that be you!
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Are your bladder and bowel symptoms affecting your quality of life or making your job difficult?
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Are you not incontinent but ‘leak a bit’?
This is a strictly confidential service and you can self refer by contacting the services listed on the right hand side of the page.
Don’t suffer in silence, come talk about your symptoms and start with a positive way forward.
