New Teaching Tools Added to ContinenceNurse.net

October 26, 2007, Concord NH — Wellness Partners is pleased to announce that it has added a new batch of Teaching Tools to www.continencenurse.net, a new website for continence nurses and other pelvic health professionals who provide services for urinary and fecal incontinence, overactive bladder, interstitial cystitis, pelvic floor dysfunction and other related medical conditions. Diane Newman, RNC, MSN, CRNP, FAAN and Director of the new website, developed this first group in a series of Quick Reference Sheets for nurses and Quick Tip Sheets for their patients. The feature, Teaching Tools, has been made possible by an unrestricted educational grant from Watson Pharmaceuticals and can be reached at http://www.continencenurse.net/tools.html.

Quick Reference Sheets for nurses provide easy to use forms and profiles that can be printed out and put right to use in clinical or institutional settings. Topics include:
• Bladder Assessment Form
• Bladder and Bowel Diary
• Bladder Diary with Pads
• Bowel Assessment Form
• Clinical Scale for Grading Digital Evaluation of Muscle Strength
• Incontinence Patient Profile Form
• Past Medical History Form
• Physical Exam Form
• Treatment Findings and Recommendations Form

The Tip Sheets for patients are all formatted into one-page, printable handouts that nurses and other allied health professionals can print and make available to their patients. Topics include:
• Helping Your Bladder to Empty
• All About Irritable Bowel Syndrome
• Tips on How to Manage Interstitial Cystitis
• Oxalate Diet for Pelvic Pain and Vulvodynia
• Self Care Practices for Pelvic Pain and Vulvodynia
• Understanding Chronic Pelvic Pain and Vulvodynia

“One of my long term goals has been to set up a network of pelvic health professionals to share information, products and opportunities and ContinenceNurse.net is my response,” says Newman. “As a busy pelvic health specialist myself, I know how important it is to stay informed about the latest advances in medicine, products, training and consumer needs — but it's not easy. Our Teaching Tools have been designed to be helpful to continence nurses and to other health professionals who interact with patients every day. The Quick Reference sheets can also be used in Train the Trainer programs in nursing homes and other institutions.”

Besides Teaching Tools, ContinenceNurse.net also offers continuing education opportunities, current information on pelvic health issues, specialized nursing protocols and programs, access to SEPHIAsChoice.com, an online searchable database of health providers, and a group of innovative community features.

SEPHIA’s Choice™ is a list of pelvic health specialists with detailed information about their practices including the specific services they provide, conditions they treat, setting, type of practice and patient target group. The list is searchable by geographic area and specialty and advanced searches can be done at the detail level. The goal is to help consumers find specific continence services and to assist health professionals refer their patients to qualified continence service providers.

This highly specialized group, continence nurses, is scattered among a variety of practice types including gynecology and urology practices. Until now, there has been no easy way for their services to be easily available to the public.

Urinary Incontinence (UI) is the unwanted leakage or loss of urine when you don't want to and overactive bladder (OAB) is the uncontrollable urinary urgency and frequency usually with urinary incontinence (UI). These two conditions are very common problems in the United States and are estimated to afflict 33 million Americans. More than two thirds of the persons with UI and OAB are women. The total annual cost of providing care for persons with UI is estimated to be $28 billion.

The inability to control urine is one of the most unpleasant and distressing problems from which a person can suffer, often causing isolation, depression and physiological problems. In addition to the patient, UI is also a burden for family caregivers and the community, and the major reason aging parents are put into nursing homes.

Wellness Partners, LLC was formed in 2001 by a group of health care professionals who want to put the “heart” back into health care. They hope to empower consumers and form partnerships with them to change the health care system through education, interaction and support. Most importantly, they want the consumer to seek wellness always.

Access their web sites at:
• www.seekwellness.com
• www.sephiaschoice.com
• www.ContinenceNurse.net

For more information, contact Josee Archer at 603 574-4915 or 800 840-9301.