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Psychosocial vs. Physical Impact of Urinary Incontinence: Corroboration of Patient with Physician Perceptions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 November 2010

Paul S. Lee
Affiliation:
York University
David W. Reid
Affiliation:
York University
Maria L. Zorzitto
Affiliation:
West Park Hospital, Toronto
Grant W. Nadon
Affiliation:
Sunnybrook Medical Centre, Toronto
Barbara Craig
Affiliation:
Sunnybrook Medical Centre, Toronto

Abstract

Both theoretical and anecdotal evidence suggest that urinary incontinence brings with it psychological effects and that these play an important role in patient response to treatment. Nevertheless, previous research has not systematically examined the physical and the psychosocial aspects of urinary incontinence from the perspectives of the patients as well as their physicians. The medical staff and 39 continence clinic patients answered questionnaires measuring the following aspects of the patients' experience of incontinence: (a) physical, (b) psychological, (c) social, and (d) knowledge about their incontinence and its treatment. Results showed (1) the medical staff perceived greater improvement than the patients did, (2) the patients placed greater emphasis on the psychological and social aspects than did the staff, and (3) patient satisfaction is more strongly associated with improvements in disease severity.

Résumé

L'évidence théorique et anecdotique suggère que l'incontinence urinaire amène des effets psychologiques et que ceux-ci jouent un rôle important dans la réaction des patients au traitement. Néanmoins, les recherches précédentes n'ont pas examiné de façon systématique les aspects physiques et psycho-sociaux de l'incontinence urinaire de la perspective des patients et celle de leurs médecins. Le personnel médical et 39 clients d'une clinique d'énurésie ont répondu aux questionnaires qui mesuraient les aspects suivants de l'expérience d'incontinence des clients: (a) physiques, (b) psychologiques, (c) sociaux, et (d) connaissance de leur incontinence et leur traitement. Les résultats ont démontré que: (1) le personnel médical a remarqué une plus grande amélioration que les patients; (2) les patients attachaient plus d'importance aux aspects psychologiques et sociaux que le personnel; et (3) la satisfaction des patients s'associe plus fortement aux effets psycho-sociaux mesurés par le personnel et les patients qu'aux améliorations de la sévérité de la maladie.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association on Gerontology 1992

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