Development, implementation and evaluation of a new nurse-led continence service: a pilot study

The Leicestershire Medical Research Council (MRC) Incontinence Study is a s eries of interrelated studies exploring the epidemiology of urinary symptom s, including incontinence, and evaluating service provision and treatment o ptions for these symptoms. This paper describes one aspect of the Leicestershire MRC Incontinence Stud y, namely the development, implementation and evaluation of a new nurse-led continence service. When developing a new service it is important to determine its acceptabilit y and suitability to the target population. The new mode of service delivery was dependent on specially trained Contine nce Nurse Practitioners (CNP) delivering predefined evidence-based treatmen t interventions. Objective and subjective outcome measures were used to evaluate the service . The service was shown to be effective in reducing urinary symptoms and led to high levels of patient satisfaction. This service is currently being evaluated in a randomized controlled trial.