Reflective Essay on Assessment and Management of Urinary Incontinence
REFLECTIVE ESSAY ON ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF URINARY INCONTINENCE
INTRODUCTION
Incontinence is one of the major problems faced by the elderly. Nurses can play a significant role in discovering continence problems (Lea R.et.al.2007). Urinary incontinence is the unintentional passing of urine. It is a very common problem and is thought to affect more than 50 million people in the developed world.(NHS.UK). To identify the problem and provide necessary treatment at the early stage, a thorough physical assessment is necessary. In my placement area I came across many residents using incontinence pads, urinary catheters and incontinence sheaths. I understood that, incontinence was a major problem among the elderly and it made me select this as one of my learning outcome. I choose Gibbs Reflective cycle 1988 to write this reflective essay on assessment and management of urinary incontinence. This model of reflection allows me to evaluate and analyse my own experiences to bring out new learning and changes. DESCRIPTION
During my supervised placement, I could find that there are lot of elderlypeople with the complaint of urinary incontinence.It is important that incontinence should be treated as it affects not only the physiological, but also the psychological aspects of a person's life. Depression and decreed quality of life have been found to co-occur in the person struggling with incontinence (Barbara Ann,2003). The social stigma that accompanies loss of bladder control is a barrier to reporting urinary incontinence. It is probable that this stigma is related to the fact that continence is a learned behavior. Incontinence is then seen as a retreat from the mastery of bowel and bladder function. The terminology used by patients to describe incontinence varies greatly but rarely mimics medical terminology. Patients may describe “accidents”, “leaking”, or “control of water”. The term “incontinent” often seems too strong for patients—perhaps suggesting that a
INTRODUCTION
Incontinence is one of the major problems faced by the elderly. Nurses can play a significant role in discovering continence problems (Lea R.et.al.2007). Urinary incontinence is the unintentional passing of urine. It is a very common problem and is thought to affect more than 50 million people in the developed world.(NHS.UK). To identify the problem and provide necessary treatment at the early stage, a thorough physical assessment is necessary. In my placement area I came across many residents using incontinence pads, urinary catheters and incontinence sheaths. I understood that, incontinence was a major problem among the elderly and it made me select this as one of my learning outcome. I choose Gibbs Reflective cycle 1988 to write this reflective essay on assessment and management of urinary incontinence. This model of reflection allows me to evaluate and analyse my own experiences to bring out new learning and changes. DESCRIPTION
During my supervised placement, I could find that there are lot of elderlypeople with the complaint of urinary incontinence.It is important that incontinence should be treated as it affects not only the physiological, but also the psychological aspects of a person's life. Depression and decreed quality of life have been found to co-occur in the person struggling with incontinence (Barbara Ann,2003). The social stigma that accompanies loss of bladder control is a barrier to reporting urinary incontinence. It is probable that this stigma is related to the fact that continence is a learned behavior. Incontinence is then seen as a retreat from the mastery of bowel and bladder function. The terminology used by patients to describe incontinence varies greatly but rarely mimics medical terminology. Patients may describe “accidents”, “leaking”, or “control of water”. The term “incontinent” often seems too strong for patients—perhaps suggesting that a
References: * Boyle P, Robertson C, Mazzetta C et al. The prevalence of male urinary incontinence in four centres: the UREPIK study. British Journal of Urology. 2003;92(9):943-947. * Lea R .(2007) Assessment and management of urinary incontinence in the elderly male. The nurse practitioner: The American journal of primary health care,32(9),26-34. * Linda Brubaker(2009):Urinary Incontinence and Quality of Life * NICE (2006) Urinaryincontinence : The management of urinary incontinence in women * Katherine WilkG40inson(2009) A guide to assessing bladder function and urinary incontinence in older people. Nursing times,105(40),20-22. * Teo , J. et al(2006) Do sleep problems or urinary incontinence predict falls in elderly women? Australian Journal of Physiotherapy,52,19-24 Read More: http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1080/028134306007393712006, Vol