Bladder and bowel dysfunction can have a major impact on people’s quality of life with the NHS estimating between 3-6 million people in the UK suffering with some degree of urinary incontinence.

There are lots of reasons why people experience these symptoms which can be upsetting and affect people’s quality of life. Yet there are a number of treatments available which, if followed correctly after an initial assessment can be truly lifechanging.

Newcastle’s Continence Nursing Team are committed to providing harm free care for bladder and bowel health by providing a constant and consistent approach by adopting and implementing the very best evidence-based practice.

Newcastle Specialist Continence Service

This service follows a unique continence model of integration between acute and community care offering specialist advice, care and treatment across Newcastle to facilitate effective assessment and treatment for bladder and bowel dysfunction.

Jackie Rees Nurse Consultant for Continence Care

Jackie Rees is a nurse consultant for continence and leads the Newcastle Specialist Continence Service.

Part of her role is to influence and shape the nursing contribution within the specialist area of bladder and bowel care leading on interesting clinical activities, for example:

the catheter care group
“No Catheter, No UTI/CAUTI” campaign
Menopause and continence
the education platform for bladder and bowel care
plus a number of surveillance studies and research projects.

Jackie’s clinical role involves the provision of direct and indirect care to patients across the Trust which is nurse led, ensuring expert clinical knowledge; evidence and best practice is incorporated into care.

Alyson Laws - Community Lead Specialist Continence Nurse — Alyson Laws – Community Lead Specialist Continence Nurse

Alyson Laws is the Nurse Specialist Continence Community Lead with 33 years nursing experience – 24 years working in the community, of which 18 years she has been a specialist nurse for continence care.

Aly is passionate about providing continence treatments and her role includes caring for a caseload of patients in the community setting.

A major aspect of her role is to provide clinical support for the wider healthcare professionals, education about bladder and bowel care across Newcastle upon Tyne.

Award winning service

Newcastle’s specialist continence nursing team have been named winners for this year’s British Journal of Nursing ‘Continence Nurse of the Year’ Award.

The jubilant team were recognised for their Light Urinary Incontinence Project (LiP) with a core focus on good bladder healthcare and reducing the reliance on containment products whilst improving quality of life for patients and their loved ones.

Watch this video to find out more about Newcastle’s Award Winning Specialist Continence Service

Bladder and Bowel Harm Free Care

Key roles and responsibilities of the Harm Free Care Leader

Aim

To develop the knowledge and skills of interested nurses through sharing and learning opportunities, for example, study days, seminars, workshops and accredited courses in bladder and bowel related topics
To act as a resource in their own clinical speciality, disseminating knowledge and supporting evidence-based practice
To provide the opportunity for individual development supporting an educational platform and a culture to flourish

Expert practice and acting as a role model in the clinical area

To place patients at the heart of everything we do by providing care of the highest standard, focusing on safety and quality, both in hospital and in the community
To take a lead in enabling the best possible health care outcomes for patients with bladder and bowel health care needs through assessment and treatment pathways embedded into practice
To act as a role model sharing expertise and supporting colleagues in bladder and bowel care
To work in partnership with bladder and bowel services to deliver treatment and care based on best practice and research

Education and training

To focus on the promotion for continence and the prevention of incontinence
To promote the implementation of assessment and treatment programs
To act as a resource in the clinical area by raising awareness of bladder and bowel care amongst the team
To provide training for colleagues on new treatments or interventions for people with bladder and bowel care, through co-ordinating training sessions for clinical colleagues
To familiarise themselves with bladder and bowel care equipment and be able to assess when to use this equipment safely

Audit

To monitor practice within the clinical area, identify and challenge inappropriate practice and initiate improvements, with full consultation and support from the line manager
To assist with audits as required and with product evaluation
To identify issues requiring further discussion
To explore early interventions to avoid UTI / CAUTI through surveillance

Information sharing and communication

To disseminate changes pertaining to bladder and bowel health care to the multidisciplinary team, including medical colleagues and relate any concerns to the appropriate
To share resources with other members of the team by acting as a resource
To refer patients to the bladder and bowel health care team/s as required for further advice