WUTH publication: Systematic review of care intervention studies for the management of incontinence and promotion of continence in older people in care homes with urinary incontinence as the primary focus (1966-2010)

Citation: Geriatr Gerontol Int. 2012 Jun 7;

Authors: Flanagan L, Roe B, Jack B, Barrett J, Chung A, Shaw C, Williams KS

Abstract: The aim of this paper was to compare published studies of care interventions for the management and promotion of continence, with urinary incontinence as the primary focus, in older care home residents. Incontinence is a prevalent and serious problem amongst older people in care homes, with an increasing international focus. MEDLINE and CINAHL searches via OVID (January 1966 to May 2010) were carried out, with studies limited to English language publications only. Included in this search were studies investigating urinary and fecal incontinence in people aged 65 years or older in care homes. Studies on surgical or pharmacological interventions or fecal incontinence alone were excluded. A total of 33 interventional studies were identified. Toileting programs and incontinence pads are the mainstays of treatment, with some studies implying significant economic and labor costs. Drug therapy as an adjunct to toileting programs has so far shown only moderate benefits. Combined physical therapy/behavioral therapies have shown effective short-term improvements. Adaptations to physical environment and staff training techniques might also be paramount. Exercise and Functional Incidental Training programs, although expensive, might provide additional benefit by reducing wetness rates and improving appropriate toileting rates. Combined complex behavioral interventions are now a common feature and their effectiveness for the management of urinary incontinence should be determined in future studies. Studies including long-term effectiveness on maintaining continence with full economic evaluation are also warranted in this population.
Link to Pubmed record

WUTH publication: Pre-operative assessment of elective surgical patients

Citation: Nurs Stand. 2012 Mar 28-Apr 3;26(30):51-6; quiz 58

Authors: Pritchard MJ

Abstract: Patients due to undergo elective surgery who are not considered to be medically fit, may have their operation postponed or even cancelled. Not only will this result in significant anxiety for the person, but it will also have financial implications for the hospital, in terms of lost theatre time. In an attempt to prevent postponing or cancelling scheduled surgery, pre-operative assessment is essential to ensure that the patient is physically and emotionally prepared. This article examines the main components of pre-operative assessment and how addressing any problems before surgery can help to improve post-operative outcomes for patients.

Link to Pubmed record

BNF app for smartphones is launched!

The NICE British National Formulary (BNF) app has been developed to provide easy access to the latest up-to-date prescribing information from the BNF - the most widely-used medicines information resource within the NHS.

It is available to download for free by health and social care professionals who work for or who are contracted by NHS England.

Users will need to enter their NHS Athens username and password to activate the app and download the content. Find out more at NHS Athens.

For more details and to download the app.

Oxford Handbooks available online

You can now access over 100 titles online from the Oxford Handbooks series at Oxford Medicine Online - http://oxfordmedicine.com/.

The list of titles and links to the full text can be accessed from the library catalogue at http://www.whnt.nhs.uk/hrod/development/library_services/.

Some important notes: You will need your NHS Athens Account to access the full text. If you haven’t registered for an NHS Athens account already, click here to link to our help-sheet to find out how to register.

UpToDate is now available in the McArdle Library!

We are pleased to announce that you can now access UpToDate in the McArdle Library at Arrowe Park Hospital.

How do I access UpToDate?
The integrated Library Service has purchased an institutional license for access to UpToDate. This is valid until 31/12/12. UpToDate is accessible from any computer/laptop that is connected to the WUTH Intranet. If you have registered for the Trust Intranet you can also access this resource from an off-site PC.Click here for instructions on how to access UpToDate.

What is UpToDate?
UpToDate provides you with a summary of the latest evidence in your specialty or area of interest. It can be used as a tool to help you answer clinical questions quickly, increase your clinical knowledge, and improve patient care. A topic summary provides you with a synthesis of the literature, the latest evidence, and specific recommendations for patient care.

Which topics does UpToDate cover?
Currently, UpToDate covers the following topics:
• Critical Care
• Drug Information
• Emergency Medicine
• Endocrinology
• Family Medicine
• Gastroenterology
• Gynaecology
• Haematology
• Hepatology
• Infectious Diseases
• Nephrology
• Neurology
• Obstetrics
• Oncology
• Paediatrics
• Pulmonology
• Rheumatology
• Surgery
• Women's Health

Where can I give feedback about UpToDate?
Please submit a Library Suggestion Form to give any feedback about UpToDate.


Find out more!
If you would like to find out more about how the library can support evidence based practice in your team, please contact us; we can send a Librarian to your next team meeting or simply talk you through the wide range of services available.

You may also visit the Integrated Library Service web pages at www.whnt.nhs.uk/library.


If you think any of your colleagues would benefit from receiving these alerts, please direct them to the Evidence Alerts web page.Acknowledgement:

FREE access to The Lancet via NHS Evidence from January 2012

Source: NICE

Year of publication: 2011

Publication type: News item

In a nutshell: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has signed a 3 year agreement to provide staff and healthcare students with access to The Lancet via the NHS Evidence website (www.evidence.nhs.uk).
From 3 January 2012, every member of staff and healthcare students from an NHS England commissioned education programmes, can access the latest online editions of The Lancet, as well as back copies from the last 4 years. This means NHS library services and healthcare staff and students won’t have to subscribe individually. This agreement will improve NHS-wide access to this valued resource.
For more information about NHS Athens visit the Integrated Library Service website at: www.whnt.nhs.uk/library, click on Resources and then on NHS Athens.
To access the Integrated Library Service help-sheet entitled: Creating and Using an NHS Athens Account go to: www.whnt.nhs.uk/library, click on Resources and Library Helpsheets.

Further dissemination: If you think any of your colleagues would benefit from receiving these alerts, please direct them to the Evidence Alerts webpage.

Keep up to date with our Evidence Alerts service!

Information for the Library, Research and Evidence Based Practice blog

Keep up to date with our Evidence Alerts service!

Source: Integrated Library Service

In a nutshell: The WUTH Integrated Library Service has added a number of new bulletins to the list available through the Evidence Alerts service (formerly LEAF). We’ve added more current awareness and horizon scanning bulletins with the aim of keeping you up to date in your area of interest.

What are Evidence Alerts?
Evidence Alerts aim to enhance your decision-making by keeping you up to date with the latest developments as well as anticipated events in your particular healthcare interest area. Evidence Alerts are delivered to you by e-mail and will alert you to new innovations, improvements, best practice, news and evidence in your area of interest.

What bulletins are available?
The bulletins we currently offer include horizon scanning bulletins for Breast Feeding, Cancer, Horizon Scanning bulletin, Cardiovascular Horizon Scanning bulletin, Community Diagnostics, COPD, Dental, Diabetes Type 2, Emotional Health and Wellbeing, End of Life care, Immunisation, Infection Control, Obesity, Patient Experience, Sexual Health, Stroke, Sustainability, Urgent Care.

Our selection of current awareness bulletins include AHP bulletin, Chief Nursing Officer bulletin, Chief Scientific Officer bulletin, ChiMat Knowledge update, Commissioning Zone newsletter, GP & Practice Team bulletin, Health Management update, Library, Research and Evidence Based Practice alerts, National Library for Public Health newsletter, NHS Institute alert, NHS Networks bulletin, NICE News, North West Public Health Observatory bulletin and Social Care bulletin

Please visit our Evidence Alerts page to view a full list of the bulletins available.

How can I subscribe to these bulletins?
Visit our Evidence Alerts page to tick the bulletins your wish to receive and tell us where you want to receive them (home or work e-mail address).

Further dissemination:
If you think any of your colleagues would benefit from receiving these alerts, please ask them to contact us to subscribe.

Statistics support for researchers

The Integrated Library Service has partnered up with staff from Upton Hall School to provide a series of Statistics Mentoring Clinics as part of a community engagement arrangement.

The Statistics Mentoring Clinics are aimed at WUTH staff who would benefit from extra support when faced with using statistics in practice or research.

Those attending the clinic must come prepared with a statistical problem (or scenario). Where possible an outline of the problem should be submitted in advance of attendance at the clinic.

2011 DATES
7th February
7th March
4th April
23rd May
13th June
4th July

TIME
On each date two clinic appointments are available:
4.00pm-5.00pm
5.00pm-6.00pm
Appointments are issued on a first come, first served basis.

HOW TO BOOK
Link here to complete the online booking form for ‘Handling Data 1: Statistics Mentoring Clinics’.

FURTHER INFORMATION
Please visit the Integrated Library Service Training Pages for more information.

New evidence-based medical resource, Dynamed, available until end November 2010

WUTH has a trial of Dynamed available until the 30th November 2010. Dynamed is a medical information database designed for use at the point of care. It provides high-end, evidence based information from respected publications, associations, and contributing clinicians. DynaMed is updated daily, giving physicians, clinicians and medical students easy access to nearly 3,000 evidence-based clinical summaries.

For more information about the trial please contact Eileen Hume, Head of Trust Integrated Library Service (Eileen.hume@nhs.net).

How do I access Dynamed?
If you have an NHS Athens username and password, go to http://search.ebscohost.com/ and select the link to ‘Athens login’ and select 'Dynamed'.

Alternatively, enter the following login details:
User Id: ns124966
Password: password

You may want to use the Dynamed User Guide to help you navigate the site.

Where can I give feedback about Dynamed?
Please submit a Library Suggestion Form to give any feedback about Dynamed.

Further resources
If you would like to find out more about the range of health information resources and library services available to enhance your clinical and business decision-making please visit the Integrated Library Service webpages at www.whnt.nhs.uk/library.

Team celebrates international recognition

Representatives from the library service and medical education team at Wirral University Teaching Hospital have received international recognition for a collaborative project to support the continuing professional development of SAS (Staff Grade and Associated Specialist) doctors within the Trust.

Victoria Kirk (Clinical Librarian) and Dr Girendra Sadera (Consultant in Critical Care & Anaesthesia and SAS Tutor) were shortlisted into the top 10 for the Medical Teacher Poster Prize at the international medical education conference, AMEE 2010 (Association for Medical Education in Europe). Out of the 1700 abstracts that were submitted, only 600 posters were selected for presentation at the conference. Following an oral presentation and questioning, a panel of judges selected the 10 best posters which were awarded with special recognition for their ‘visual and academic impact’.

Victoria and Dr Sadera, alongside colleagues from the library service and medical education team, have worked closely to develop tailored library services for SAS doctors in order to meet their specific information needs. This included organising a Library Open Day for SAS doctors to raise awareness of literature searching services and ‘evidence alerts’, and launching a dedicated web portal to signpost SAS doctors to evidence based resources. The team have worked hard to raise awareness of how these services can support the daily practice of doctors within the Trust. It is hoped that the team can build on this achievement and continue to work together to achieve further successes.