The Ireland branch of the Association of Continence Professionals held its ninth Annual National Education conference in Athlone in early March. 

The conference – themed ‘All Kinds of Everything: A Guide to Continence Care’ – focused on the impact of incontinence on quality of life and the deficit in resources allocated to supporting patients with the condition. The audience comprised nurses, physiotherapists and allied healthcare professionals working in community, hospital, private and voluntary services from north and south of the border.

The keynote speaker, Maria Walsh, MEP for the Midlands-North West constituency, discussed the EU Continence Health Summit Manifesto for Policy Reform – ‘The Urge to Act’ – which was launched in Brussels in November 2023. The manifesto acknowledges the hidden challenge of incontinence and its impact on individuals and families, often with debilitating and chronic consequences across gender, age and socioeconomic background. 

Optimising care

Incontinence can have a serious impact on a person’s quality of life both physically and psychosocially, not to mention economically. This creates a barrier to full participation in society for individuals suffering with incontinence, as well as for their carers.

Optimal continence health should be a realistic achievement for all concerned. Incontinence is projected to be become a major health problem across Europe, exacerbated by an ageing population. While healthcare professionals are making every effort with existing resources in various EU countries, current systems are not yet fully adapted to support continence care. 

‘The Urge to Act’ calls for concrete policy changes that recognise the importance of patient-centred continence care and calls on national and European policy-makers to develop a continence strategy that facilitates knowledge sharing and provides a framework for action in EU states.

Clinical presentations

Following a welcome address from Roisin Lynch, secretary of the Ireland branch, Prof Eamonn Rogers, national clinical lead for urology, RCSI, spoke about the current funding and rollout of the urology model of care, and in particular the pathway for urinary incontinence. This is a dedicated management pathway that integrates primary and secondary specialist continence care services. A pilot of this pathway has commenced in CHO areas 1 and 2 with the Saolta University Health Care Group. New posts for integrated clinical nurse specialists in continence care and specialist physiotherapists have been funded across both CHO areas for this pathway.

Ann Costigan, CNS in children’s continence, Children Health Ireland Crumlin, gave an informative presentation on constipation and the importance of supporting the child and their family. Childhood constipation affects one in three children. It can be poorly recognised by parents and healthcare professionals alike. Ms Costigan went on to discuss the importance of early recognition, appropriate treatment with osmotic laxatives as per NICE guidelines, and highlighted the value of parental education and support.

Beatrice McGinley, a physiotherapist in Galway, spoke about the management of post-prostatectomy urinary incontinence and the impact of incontinence post operatively on a man’s quality of life. Ms McGinley described the management strategies and support available for these men and the role of the physiotherapist in their care.

Dr Sumita Sarma, obstetrician and uro- gynaecologist, Galway University Hospital, presented on the genito-urinary symptoms of menopause. Dr Sarma said some women encounter distressing urinary symptoms both pre and post menopause. She looked at the assessment process and interventions to address these issues.

Stefano Terzoni, a nurse researcher from Milan, spoke about pelvic health and the need for a multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis and management.

Poster presentations

A poster competition was also held at the conference, with the award for best poster going to Olivia O’Connor, practice development nurse, Community Healthcare West, for a poster on the assessment of continence and catheter management. Ms O’Connor accepted the award on behalf of her colleagues on the Practice Development Continence Working Group in CHO2.

Other poster competition entrants who received highly commended awards included teams from Cavan General Hospital and the Royal College of Surgeons; CHO 7 and Trinity College Dublin; the CRANN Centre Registered Charity in CHO4; and CHO 1.

Feedback from delegates highlighted the overall value of the conference and the opportunity it afforded them to network, disseminate research and share best practices. In addition, attendees reported that the conference was an inspiring event that addressed this debilitating and taboo condition, with 99% of delegates rating the event as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’.  

Further information

The Ireland branch of the Association of Continence Professionals is dedicated to supporting nurses and allied healthcare care professionals in the provision and delivery of continence care in Ireland through education, research and the sharing of best practice and service improvements. 

For further information about the group, visit acpcontinence.co.uk