Urinary Incontinence

For many people, getting older can be difficult because of fear. They worry about what could happen to them or what type of diseases they might develop later on. To become a more mature adult is a stage of life that each individual will experience in a certain point. Statistics shows that eighty-eight percent of those of sixty-five years of age and older have at least one chronic health condition such as diabetes, dementia, Parkinson’s disease or cancer. (ezinearticles.com). This scholarly essay will focus mainly on urinary incontinence (UI) which is a common health problem that elderly may have.

Urinary Incontinence is the accidental or unwanted leakage of urine causes by a loss of bladder control. (www.womenhealthmatters.ca). The need to urinate occurs suddenly and the individual is therefore unable to resist the need to void. The loss of bladder control is a symptom, not a disease, and there are six different types of urine incontinence that are present. Stress incontinence is a loss of urine when exerting pressure or stress, urge incontinence is a sudden or intense urge to urinate followed by an involuntary loss of urine, overflow incontinence consist of the inability to empty the bladder, mixed incontinence is when experiencing more than one type of overactive bladder, functional incontinence is most likely manifested because of physical or mental impairment that keeps patients from reaching the toilet in time, and gross total incontinence which is when the bladder has no storage capacity and the urine is continuously leaking. (mayoclinic.com). There are many effects that could cause a loss of bladder control in elderly such as caffeine intake, medications, physical limitation, or prostate surgery for men. (Medicinenet.com)...

... middle of paper ...

...those which may have an impact on the incontinence, or check urine to determine if infection is present.” (Nursing best practice guideline). There are many more however, it is not all of the nurses who follow the principles.

To have met this patient was a blessing. To see her being strong and try to live differently was amazing. Other than her left side weakness, the desire for her to get physically powerful was obvious and noticeable. It is true that an uncontrollable bladder can have a serious effect on older adult but the key is to be motivated, seek for improvement and build self-esteem. As a nurse, it is important to support and be there for them. Urinary incontinence is not easy to overcome and it is unfortunate when one discovers they have a disorder of sorts, but with anything in life adaptation, patience and care can make any problem seem insignificant.