Urinary incontinence in extended care facilities: a literature review and proposal for continuous quality improvement

Despite inconsistencies in the literature regarding research design, definitions, outcomes measures, and maintenance programs, the majority of continence experts have accepted prompted voiding as a successful method for decreasing urinary incontinence in extended care facilities. Research findings to date lack a consistent definition of urinary incontinence, and no objective outcomes measures are available to evaluate the success of an intervention. Furthermore, maintenance of an intervention is often not included in the research design. The findings to date suggest that prompted voiding programs in extended care facilities can help decrease cost of care and dependence, increase self esteem, increase dignity, maintain skin health, and increase satisfaction with care among significant others. Implications for research include developing more structured approaches to maintaining continence, comprehensive training programs for extended care facility staff at all levels, and realistic maintenance protocols for interventions used to maintain continence.