ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To assess the degree of adherence to the current National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines on the management of urinary incontinence (UI) in men. DESIGN: Retrospective survey of male patients with UI in primary and acute hospital (AH) care as part of a national audit. SETTING: NHS AH and primary care (PC) trusts. SAMPLE: Twenty-five men <65 years old and 25 men ≥65 years old from each participating site. METHODS: All NHS trusts in England, Wales Northern Ireland and Channel Islands were eligible to participate. A web-based data collection form aligned to the NICE guidelines was constructed for the study. All data submitted to the audit were anonymous, and access to the web tool was password protected for confidentiality. RESULTS: Data were returned by 80 % (128/161) of acute trusts and 52 % (75/144) of PC trusts in England, and 71 % (10/14) of combined trusts from Northern Ireland, Wales and the Channel Islands including data on 559 men <65 and 1271 65+ from 141 sites within acute hospitals and 445 men <65 and 826 men 65+ in PC, a total of 3101 participants. CONCLUSION: The majority of men seen within the NHS with LUTS do not receive management according to evidence-informed NICE guidelines; in general, older men are less likely to receive care that meets guideline standards than younger men.
Subject(s)
Benchmarking , Guideline Adherence/statistics & numerical data , Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms/diagnosis , Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms/therapy , Urinary Incontinence/diagnosis , Urinary Incontinence/therapy , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Retrospective Studies , United KingdomABSTRACT
Graduated compression stockings are used prophylactically on a variety of patients within acute hospitals. Anecdotal evidence suggests patients have a limited understanding of this treatment. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore patients' experiences of compression stockings and to ascertain perceptions of their use. Information was gathered using telephone interviews from a sample of 12 adults who had been patients within the past 2 months, and who had worn compression stockings for more than 48 hours. The results showed that patients received little or no information from healthcare staff regarding compression stockings, but that they did have knowledge from other sources, such as long-haul flight advice. This raises issues of informed consent and patient empowerment and highlights the need for both verbal and written information. The information gained informed a patient information leaflet, which was developed in partnership with a patient focus group.
