Fighting incontinence via the internet
At last, your challenge with incontinence can now be alleviated, thanks to the internet, which is providing information, help and guidance.
Incontinence is a condition in which a person involuntarily loses urine or bowel control. It is a common medical condition that affects millions of people worldwide and is most prevalent among women and older adults. At present, incontinence is widely under-diagnosed and under-treated and many who suffer often simply don’t know where to turn for help, advice and support.
Several organisations aim to change this with active outreach to people affected by incontinence problems: Bladder and Bowel foundation, Britain’s leading organisation that works with people suffering from incontinence. It is a charity that was founded to provide support and information to people with bladder and bowel problems – http://www. bladderandbowelfoundation.org/
Its mission is to improve the quality of life for people with these illnesses, who often experience incontinence as a symptom.
http://www.continenceworldwide. org/is regularly visited by people in need of its expertise. It also provides web addresses to information throughout the world.
‘With greater awareness of the causes of incontinence problems, and the range of treatments, these sites can bring incontinence out of the water closet. Incontinence, the involuntary loss of urine or faeces, is still hidden,’ says Hans Bergh of SCA, the leading provider of incontinence pads in the world.
‘In our culture, things which have to do with the workings of the body, particularly, the bladder and bowel, are things people don’t generally talk about. So when something goes wrong with the bowel or the bladder, they are embarrassed to talk about it,’ explains Mr Bergh. ‘It’s a taboo subject. They won’t even talk about it to their family, friends or sometimes even to their doctors. So they suffer in silence. Some even stay at home and don’t go out, afraid that they might have an accident.’
Therefore, social support is essential and the web can provide it in a way not previously possible.
Getting well
Everyone can be helped. There are chances of you getting totally well too. There are constantly new developments, such as medicine and new surgical procedures. There is also a greater understanding of conservative ways to treat the problems, such as pelvic floor exercises or bladder re-training.
Good information empowers people in their fight to a full and dignified life. Through the World Wide Web, we can reach more people, and it helps us to widen our network to all continents.
Financial support
From a customer perspective, sponsorship provides access to things they normally would not have—and they appreciate it. ‘Our sponsorship activities deal with promoting awareness, education and research for continence care. It takes time to build solid relationships through sponsorship. In Europe we have supported some of the same organisations for five to 10 years,’ says Hans Berghs of SCA.
He says that by supporting various organisations with information and products. ‘We not only bring something to the community but also gain recognition as a consultative company,’ he adds. ‘It is one way of showing our respect for these organizations. Often we learn a lot from these relationships.’
END: PG32/43