Incontinence and its subtypes Essay

Incontinence is a common health condition that affects a wide-range of individuals. Incontinence can be divided into two classifications which include fecal and urinary. Fecal incontinence refers to the involuntary passage of fecal matter. Incontinence can also be classified as urinary incontinence, which is also common, where there is the involuntary passing of urine. Urinary incontinence can further be divided into stress and urgency incontinence and sometimes a client may experience a mixture of both. The cause of incontinence varies from individual to individual and can cause an immense health burden. In an article by the Disease of the Colon & Rectum journal, it is stated that
The health burden of fecal incontinence is substantial, with data from 1 health management organization suggesting that, in 2005, annual healthcare costs were almost $3000 higher in people with fecal incontinence than in those without. The prevalence of fecal incontinence in the general adult population community is important, because it will not only define the extent of the problem but also facilitate health service planning and provision.(NG, K., Sivakumaran, Y., Nassar, N., & Gladman, M., 2015,).
As well as fecal incontinence, urinary incontinence also causes strain on healthcare resource application. A study was done to measure healthcare resource utilization, including overactive bladder surgeries for people with urinary incontinence, OAB-related hospitalizations, and incontinence pads, medication related to urinary incontinence and physician visits. The results of this study showed that incontinent individuals suffered a greater health care financial burden because of more healthcare resources being utilized for their treatment than continent individuals. Their quality of life was lessened due to the excessive care and treatments, some were even unable to attend regularly attend their jobs. Although incontinence is common and widely recognized, the prevalence of precise data has been hard to determine. Two reasons quoted for that are that methodologies and populations surveyed differ from study to study. (Brian S. Buckleya B., Lapitanb, M., 2010) It also may be difficult to obtain data because most studies rely on self-report and could be affected by unwillingness to divulge incontinence issues.
In the Person-Environment-Occupational-Performance Model it states that good health permit participation in day by day life. This model focuses on the relationships between the four concepts of the individual, environment, occupation and performance and the desired out-comes of occupational performance and participation. (Scaffa,2010) This model is a good tool for incontinence because an individual with incontinence may have difficulty maintaining everyday occupations and performance. In the healthcare study of individuals with overactive bladders with urinary incontinence, results showed that incontinent individual's health related quality of life ranked lower than that of continent individuals some not even able to attend work regularly. Scaffa states that one the PEOP Model's strength that makes it best for use in health promotion is that it provides a structure to guide intervention".(Scaffa,2010) This model can help address incontinence because it requires you to look at all factors contributing to diminished occupation performance so that you can create the best intervention.