Australian community health practitioners' knowledge and experience with managing urinary incontinence that begins in childhood.

Abstract

General practitioners (GPs) often see children with enuresis and daytime urinary incontinence, and adults with persistent enuresis. The aim of this study was to assess Australian community health practitioners' knowledge and experiences with managing these conditions. Health practitioners were surveyed about their knowledge and experience managing urinary incontinence that begins in childhood. Associations between participant characteristics and knowledge/experience were examined using chi-square tests. The 1495 participants were mostly female, experienced, GPs who worked in a metropolitan area and/or saw patients with incontinence infrequently, but felt knowledgeable and confident about management of incontinence. Correct survey answers were given by 93% of participants for managing enuresis, 81% for daytime urinary incontinence (with 18% choosing inappropriate and potentially dangerous responses), and 61% for managing enuresis that has persisted into adulthood. Better education is needed for GPs regarding management of urinary incontinence that begins in childhood, particularly for daytime incontinence in children and enuresis that persists into adulthood.