Bowel Research UK is excited to support The Pelvic Floor Society on a Priority Setting Partnership for faecal incontinence. If you experience faecal incontinence, care for someone who does, or are a healthcare professional working in this area, visit The Pelvic Floor Society website to find out how you can get involved with this project.
What is faecal incontinence?
Faecal incontinence is the inability to control bowel movements, resulting in the involuntary leakage of stool. Caused by muscular injury and ageing amongst many other factors, the severity of this condition ranges from occasional leakage when passing gas to a complete loss of bowel control. Other symptoms include the passing of stool from the anus without awareness, which impacts the social and personal lives of those affected. You can read more about faecal incontinence here.
What is a Priority Setting Partnership?
A Priority Setting Partnership or PSP is a project that aims to discover the top ten research priorities for a health condition. It brings together patients, carers, researchers, and health professionals to find out what really matters in a particular area. The James Lind Alliance (JLA) is supporting this PSP, which will identify and prioritise unanswered questions around faecal incontinence. A PSP is just the beginning of research, as once the top ten priorities are identified, other researchers can use this to decide what to research in order to provide faecal incontinence patients with the help they need the most.
About the PSP
This PSP for adult faecal incontinence is led by the Pelvic Floor Society and overseen by the James Lind Alliance, with Bowel Research UK providing PPI support. Patients, their carers & families, and health & care professionals will identify and agree on unanswered questions relating to faecal incontinence, which will make it easier for researchers to conduct their research, and eventually improve the quality of life for patients with faecal incontinence and their families. Find out more on The Pelvic Floor Society website.