Ever been caught ‘short’? I mean really short?

Happened more than once?

Never happened to you? Don’t worry, chances are it will at some stage.

Five million Aussies experience incontinence – and its more than a mild embarrassment, it could be a sign of underlying health issues or lead to more complicated ones.

The figures are pretty startling:

• one in four people over the age of 15 are incontinent
• almost 50 per cent of those experiencing incontinence are under the age of 50
• more than 1.3 million boys and men experience incontinence
• over 80 per cent of people who experience urinary incontinence are women.

“There are simple strategies we can use that makes a huge difference in their lives,” Latrobe Regional Health Continence Nurse Elizabeth Davis said.

“For some people it’s about managing the issue, while for others it’s about treatment that leads to the problem being eradicated completely.”

The Continence Service at Latrobe Regional Health (LRH) is supported by a doctor, nurse, physiotherapist and occupational therapist who provide outpatient consultations.

“We see people of all ages suffering with urinary and faecal incontinence. It’s a free service which includes assessments, testing, advice and guidance, including applications to things like the NDIS or the Federal Government’s Continence Aids Payment Scheme," Elizabeth said.

While incontinence can be seen as a mild embarrassment the implications of it not being managed are much more serious.

“If you think of the child experiencing incontinence, it can lead to teasing, school refusal and on-going problems in the education system, which can have lifelong implications. For the adult, the trip to the loo at 3am might be inconvenient, but it also increases the risks of a fall, which in the older cohort can be disastrous, leading to broken bones, hospital stays and ongoing issues,” Elizabeth said.

The temptation to self-manage urinary incontinence by purchasing pads from a chemist or supermarket can lead to people remaining untreated.

“People often think ‘oh! It’s nothing, I’ll just wear a pad.’ But that approach can lead to urinary tract infections for instance or a missed diagnosis of something more serious,” Elizabeth said.

Much of the work of the Continence Nurse involves working with people whose experience is of a lack of control when passing urine or faeces. The work also covers constipation, an issue exacerbated by poor diet, which in itself can lead to major illness.

“If mum and dad have a poor diet, then the children in that family will also learn to make the same food choices. Changing how people choose what food to eat, can have a major positive impact on their health right now and into the future, for themselves and their children and grandchildren,” Elizabeth said.

More information about the Continence Service Specialist Clinic can be found at lrh.com.au/find-a-service