About us

Our nurse-led continence service provides an integrated bladder and bowel dysfunction service to all adult patients registered with Richmond GP practices.

The service provides three main activities for patients:

  • Provision of community-based specialist continence and bladder and bowel health (BBH) clinics - aimed at continence promotion, improvement or resolution of the health complaint.
  • Provision of NHS incontinence products for patients unsuitable for active treatment, or who have failed to respond to active treatment (including care homes).
  • Telephone advice, education and support for the local community and healthcare/social care services.

Continence-trained nurses provide outpatient clinics in Richmond borough, where patients are assessed, investigated and treated. The service covers a wide range of urological, gynaecological, colorectal and continence problem.

Please do not come to the clinic without an appointment, as you will not be seen. 

Problems the service covers

  • Urinary frequency, urgency, nocturia (waking up at night time), urgency incontinence, stress incontinence, nocturnal enuresis (bedwetting), passive incontinence, reflex incontinence
  • Mild to moderate vaginal/anal prolapses
  • Perineal tears (i.e. third-degree tear)
  • Lower urinary tract symptoms
  • Recurrent female urinary tract infections/cystitis advice
  • Day/night time polyuria advice (passing too much urine)
  • Constipation, faecal urgency, faecal incontinence, chronic diarrhoea, diverticular disease and irritable bowel syndrome advice
  • Catheter-related complications for urethral, suprapubic, intermittent catheters
  • Trials without catheters
  • Management of catheter complications advice

Diagnostic tools

  • A wide range of charts and patient-questionnaires
  • Bladder volume and residual urine ultrasound measurements
  • Uroflow traces and interpretation
  • Urinalysis
  • Bloods requests
  • Referrals for specific ultrasonic investigations
  • Urine microscopy/culture/sensitivity requests

Interventions

  • Pelvic floor muscle exercises with or without aids (i.e. vaginal cones)
  • Bladder retraining (or bladder drill)
  • Advice on lifestyle, fluids, weight loss, skin care
  • Advice on bladder emptying techniques
  • Advice on prevention of female recurrent urinary infections
  • Advice on toileting regimes
  • Advice on night time problems
  • Teaching intermittent catheterisation
  • Advice on the management of indwelling (long-term) catheters including drainage systems, valves etc.
  • Advice on the prevention of catheter associated infections and other complications
  • Advice on management of small/moderate prolapses
  • Advice regarding a wide range of incontinence gadgets and appliances for men and women

We also manage the provision of NHS incontinence products (pads) for the local community and provide nurse-led continence clinics for patients seeking NHS incontinence products provision.

We provide continence services and incontinence products to patients living in residential homes, and work in close partnership with urological, gynaecological consultants, women health/musculoskeletal physiotherapists.

We provide direct referrals to some consultants and liaise directly with GPs and other services for feedback/further treatment advice as required by individual circumstances.

Meet the team

  • Karin Boyton, Team Lead
  • Eunice Wheeler, Registered General Nurse (RGN)
  • To be appointed - Healthcare Assistant
  • Jasmine McMurdo, Administrator

Referrals

Patients registered with Richmond GPs can be referred to this service by contacting the Single Point of Access (SPA) service on 020 8630 3943 or 1442

Directly to the service by letter or using the continence service referral form.

DOC file icon Referral form

Contact us

Contact the Continence Service Administrative Office on: 020 8714 4086 or 4085. The office is open Monday to Friday, 9am-4pm.

An answering machine records messages when our administrative team are on the phone or away from the desk. If the machine is on, please leave your:

  • First name and last name (spell any difficult words)
  • Contact telephone number
  • NHS number
  • Brief reason for your call