§ Earl Howeasked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they have made any assessment of the value of continence services for the health and education of children and in the context of social care; and [HL618]
What assessment has been made of the prevalence of nocturnal enuresis, daytime wetting, soiling and constipation in—
- (a) children with mental health problems;
- (b) children with learning disabilities; and
- (c) children in care; and [HL620]
What assessment has been made of the prevalence of continence problems in children with autism; and[HL621]
Whether an assessment has been made of the role of specialist continence nurses and the value of nurse-led clinics for children with bowel and bladder problems. [HL622]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Warner)Continence services play an important role in the health and education of children affected by problems of incontinence.Good Practice in Continence Services, issued by the Department of Health in April 2000, provides guidance to primary care trusts (PCTs) on continence services. This includes the advice that PCTs should have specialist continence services in place, which provide patients with an individual assessment of their needs.
It is estimated that 10 per cent of five to 15 year-olds have a mental health disorder. Among children with a mental health disorder, an estimated 5 per cent suffer from enuresis as a physical complaint and 1 per cent from soiling. The department does not collect data on continence problems in children with learning disabilities, in care, or children with autistic spectrum disorders.
The department and the Medical Research Council have recently funded a training fellowship on clinical nurse specialists' contribution to patient care and evidence-based practice. This included a qualitative study of the current and potential role of continence nurse advisers working in a primary care setting in north-west England.