May 2017

Presidents Report

Deadl ine for i tems for next

Newsletter, COB Friday , 28 July

2017

In response to multiple queries relating to the request for information from health services who are in the process of planning for the roll out of NDIS in their regions and in conjunction with my direct experience delivering a continence assessment service as an NDIS provider, I created and circulated an initial NDIS paper intended as a guide to provide information as stated by the NDIS provider engagement executive, SWEP/NDIS Team and the NDIS NEMA executive planning team. The main concerns that have been raised by CoNSA Vic/Tas membership:

NDIS participants receiving funding for continence products can choose whether they want to include a continence assessment in the plan prior to purchase of continence products

NDIS planners lack insight into the complexity of continence issues and are unfamiliar with the specialist knowledge and skill set that continence nurse specialists possess

Cost allocation for a continence assessment by a continence nurse with post graduate qualifications is not cost effective at $93.95/ hour making it very difficult to achieve cost recovery for continence service delivery

Lack of parity and clarity from NDIS executive for the cost and delivery of continence services across Australia

Recommendations put forward for consideration by CoNSA Vic/Tas membership:

All NDIS participants who have continence aids funded via NDIA should have a continence assessment by a continence nurse

All NDIS planners have education regarding continence management

All Continence Services consider lobbying for a consistent and realistic price point that recognises the expertise of our nursing specialty as we move towards a deregulated commercial environment

Amendments to be made to the NDIS information paper circulated to the CoNSA Vic/Tas membership in April 2017

Where to from here: CoNSA Vic/Tas Executive have formed an NDIS subcommittee who

will develop terms of reference to inform the scope of activity

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Presidents Report

1 -2

ANZAC Ceremony 2-3

25th National Confer-ence on Incontinence

4

Committee Member Profile

5

Save the Date - Meeting of the Waters

6

The week of… 6

Attachments: 6th Annual State Continence Conference

MAY 2016 Page 2

Presidents Report (continued)

that this subcommittee will undertake Once the terms of reference have been ratified, information and activity will be

disseminated to assist the membership in articulating a clear pathway forward as the NDIS rolls out in their region

Developing a strategy for feedback pathways to register concerns or issues around NDIS processes

The CoNSA Vic/Tas Pelvic Floor Workshop was booked out within 24 hours of being announced. The hands on learning with interactive models in small groups as well as having access to experienced and supportive preceptors is obviously an appealing way for continence nurses to learn, build and /or improve their competency in performing pelvic examinations.

Save the date Saturday 22 July 2017 for Meeting of the Waters which will be held at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne

A reminder that membership fees for 2017/18 financial year are open Method of Payment for 2017-2018 Membership Credit card: Use link to access Trybooking: https://www.trybooking.com/LSOH For further information and enquiries contact the CoNSA Vic/Tas Secretary, Christine Sumper via email at consavt@gmail.com Kind Regards Lisa Wragg President CoNSA Vic/Tas

I was privileged to represent CoNSA at the annual ANZAC Ceremony at the Nurses Memorial on Sunday 23 April 2017. This is a very moving occasion when nurses come together to honour the efforts of nurses in war. I was able to lay a wreath on behalf of CoNSA along with other nurses from various organisations and special interest groups. Many Australian nurses have contributed significantly to the Australian war effort with many losing their lives as they attempted to care for the sick and wounded. If you have the time, google Vivian Bullwinkell who was the sole survivor of the Bangka Island Massacre during World War II despite being wounded. Twenty-one other nurses perished. Her proud family always have representatives at the ANZAC ceremony in her honour. Janie Thompson

Nurses for continence Page 3

Annual ANZAC Ceremony

May 2016 Page 4

25th National Conference on Incontinence

Firstly, I would like to thank all those responsible for sponsoring my attendance at the 25th National Conference on Incontinence held in Adelaide in November 2016. This was only my second continence conference. My first one was in Cairns. Like the last one, this conference provided so much information to absorb and share. Here are some moments I remember. The CoNSA dinner at Adelaide Football Oval was amazing. I was able to network with nurses from Country Victoria to Northern Queensland. Surprisingly, I even meet a nurse who works just up the road from BECC at North Park Private Hospital. Some highlights for me were the speakers from the Workshop on Dysfunctional Gut and learning more about faecal transplants. I discovered that “Crap Capsules” are a possibility for the future of this method of transplant. Presenters discussed the need for a ‘Poo Bank’ as well as our traditional Blood Bank! We were also informed about the kind of healthy candidates needed for this kind of poo donation. I also attended breakfast symposiums on both Thursday and Friday. Presentations were on NDIS and OAB. NDIS guest speaker Suzanne spoke about how much continence nurses have changed her life. She was wheelchair bound and social continence was very important to her for quality of life. Her experience of life reflected a real go-getter who was not going to allow a disability to slow her motivations and achievements. This was a massive reinforcement of how we as continence nurses do change people’s lives with our knowledge, skills and recommendations. Another presentation that stood out to me was about the management of vulvar pain. The term “Lady Garden” was something that sticks in my head from this presentation. We need to look after our ‘lady gardens’ by using the right creams, soaps and treatments. The speaker on Botox injections and management of pelvic pain was also very informative as was the Pessary Self-Management by Nurses from St George Hospital, Sydney. It was very motivating to hear nurses doing what we are good at: educating and empowering our clients to self-manage care. I also gained more knowledge about prostate surgery and the right preparation needed for better outcomes for these clients. India stood out. Hearing from Rebekah Das and her daily challenges in women’s health as a Physiotherapist was mind blowing. I was awestruck by someone who works in such a diverse environment. Another interesting area of discussion was transgender surgery and continence issues, both short and long term, for health professionals. It was interesting to hear about clients post-op who had complications from overseas procedures and who needed to come back to Australia to be sorted out by our specialists/surgeons. Apparently, this is becoming a more common occurrence. Importantly, I learned extensively about managing children with special needs and understanding difficult behaviours as well as sensory issues for these children when toileting training. The conference covered so much more but I can only give a snippet of information and knowledge gained. I have only recently been able to share what I have learned from the conference at our Journal Club with my colleagues. We have some new staff who were unable to attend the conference but who were very interested to know all about it. I definitely know that I have gained from this experience and therefore, so have my clients. I encourage anyone who has the opportunity to attend one of these conferences, to do so. Your practise will be strengthened by doing so. Katrina Ziebarth Continence Nurse, Bundoora Extended Care Victoria

Nurses for continence Page 5

Committee Member Profile

I started with CoNSA Vic/Tas committee in November 2011 which is amazing as it does not seem that long ago! At the time it was 11 years of continence nursing behind me and I thought that I could maybe learn something new from my peers? I can’t believe that I have been doing the role of Secretary for 6 years this year! It goes so fast. Just ask Steve Marburg who has a few more notches in his belt! In 2011 CoNSA was known as NFC and I had big shoes to fill taking over as Secretary from the delightful Elaine Scanlon. I remember at the time that the positions left vacant were either Secretary or President and I certainly did not see myself as being able to do that role! That was left to Janie Thompson and we are all thankful for that. I actually did not see myself as being a suitable candidate for any position and thought that it was for the more advanced and experienced continence nurses. I am so glad looking back that I did take up the challenge and go for it. The main reason I did take on the role was I was given gentle encouragement by the great Linda Hornsby. She was positive and enthusiastic and this made the difference. I was given the confidence to try it and see what happens which is what you need. Being on the committee provides me with an avenue in which to keep up to date across continence nursing in Victoria. It allows me to have input into the progress of our group and has enhanced my peer networking. I enjoy attending our meetings and admire the high skill set of the group that we have. It is all volun-tary and a worthwhile experience for anyone who may be considering coming on board. To any of the new continence nurses joining the committee would be a great way to increase your confidence and meet with others who would be able to offer you that extra support and mentoring. My longevity on the committee is testament to the great team we have who are few in number but rich with invigorating ideas and are quality professionals! We all try to do our utmost to improve continence nursing in Victoria and as we move forward with some challenges ahead we can be thankful for our cohesion as a group of specialist nurses trying to do their best!” Christine Sumper Secretary CoNSA Vic/Tas

MAY 2016 Page 6

Save the Date

SAVE THE DATE

Annual Meeting Of The Waters Saturday 22 July 2017

Bookings open 2 June 2017 via TryBooking

Further information about this study day and TryBooking registration process will be sent to members shortly

THE WEEK OF

MEN'S HEALTH WEEK

12 - 18 JUNE 2017

CONTINENCE AWARENESS WEEK 19 -25 JUNE 2017

Incontinence: Is no laughing matter

CoNSA Vic/Tas Special Interest Group

ANMF (Vic Branch)

http://www.anmfvic.asn.au/interest-groups

To access education material on the CoNSA SIG website www.anmfvic.asn.au Click on ‘interest groups’ Scroll down to ‘CoNSA Vic/Tas’ To access education information click on the SEARCH EVENTS tab

NEWSLETTER CO-ORDINATOR: Jenni Schroeder Phone: 0408 555 165 (BH) Email: jenni.schroeder@easternhealth.org.au Secretary e-mail: consavt@gmail.com Closing date for next newsletter is Friday, 28 July 2017

Nurses for Continence Page 7

Future Payments to CoNSA Vic/Tas

I no longer have the facility to process credit card payments. All future payments will only be accepted via TryBooking (as a receipt is generated immediately) or by cheque (a receipt will be sent when I find the time!) This will include membership and any one-off education that is not free of charge.

Stephen Marburg

Treasurer

CoNSA Vic/Tas