About the project

Urinary incontinence (UI) refers to the involuntary loss of urine, and includes different types with different underlying causes. UI is a very common condition that can greatly impact on the wellbeing and the quality of life of women who suffer from this. In the last decade new surgical treatments for UI have been developed and improved and the number of women having surgery is increasing. However the quality and availability of continence services across England is still poor and variable and there is concern that not all patients have equitable access to surgical care. Our research project aims to improve the delivery and organization of surgical services for women with urinary incontinence through investigating how access might be more equitable for patients and the quality of this care may be improved. Our conclusions will be drawn from three separate research studies within our wider research project:

1. Through a study of existing primary and secondary care datasets we are examining where the variation is in rates of surgery across the country and what factors may influence this.

2. Through our patient interview study we are studying the impact of UI on women’s lives and patients’ own accounts of experiences and expectations of surgical and non-surgical treatments for UI.

3. Through presenting case vignettes to clinicians we are investigating the importance of specific patient characteristics which impact on their treatment decisions.