We are listening – Continence confidence

Hello my name is Allison,

I’m the Team Leader for the NHS Lanarkshire Continence Service.

We are a team of clinical continence advisors, skilled in all aspects of continence care providing care and support for people experiencing bladder and bowel problems.

Our Home Delivery Service is responsible for the provision of continence garments to over 11,000 patients throughout Lanarkshire.

We know that some people can be embarrassed or distressed as a result of incontinence, but we can support you to find a way to manage your condition and symptoms. We undertake individual assessment in clinical settings and see some patients in their own homes.

                                             NHS Scotland Photo Library

We work closely with community and hospital based healthcare teams. If you are referred to us we will ask you to complete a quality of life questionnaire at your initial appointment to highlight what matters to you and how your symptoms impact on your daily living. Involving you in your care and agreeing a treatment plan with you is a key part of our person-centred approach.

We have developed and produced patient information leaflets for both men and women with advice and information about training tips and techniques to help support you throughout your treatment plan.

Once your treatment plan is complete and you are able to manage your condition, we will ask you to consider the same questions to assess how effective your treatment plan was and how you feel this has improved your quality of life. Your feedback helps us to see what the best treatment options are for certain conditions; it also provides encouragement and hope for other people accessing our service to realise that together we can improve their daily living and quality of life.

“The service is excellent-first class and we are very grateful for it. Staff couldn’t have done anymore and it has really helped me. Their manner is fantastic and they are very professional in their approach”

“This service makes my every day needs more accessible, I don’t know how I would manage, I have more confidence in going about my day to day activities.”

If you believe you have a continence problem you can contact the NHS Lanarkshire Continence Advisory Service, or attend a Continence Promotion Clinic. Clinics are available throughout Lanarkshire and you will be able to access the clinic which is most convenient for you; whether that is close to where you live, or possibly where you work. Visit the Continence Advisory Service section of the NHS Lanarkshire website to find locations and opening times of clinics: http://www.nhslanarkshire.org.uk/Services/Continence/Pages/default.aspx

If you have an experience of the Continence Service you would like to share, please speak to a member of staff, respond on Patient Opinion, or visit the “Your Feedback” Section of the NHS Lanarkshire website to see the other ways to get in touch www.nhslanarkshire.org.uk