Peer-reviewed article
Exploring incontinence and toileting among children with additional needs
Isobel June Walker, Mascha Friderichs, Anna Urbanowicz ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This exploratory study looked at incontinence and toilet training among 5- and 6-year-old children with additional needs who had earlier used a service for high-risk infants. Seventeen caregivers completed an online questionnaire about 18 children. Thirteen of the 18 children experienced incontinence. Caregivers' answers about toilet training were grouped into five themes: caregiver expertise, emotions, determining the leader, taking action, and evaluating progress. The authors say the results support further research on what helps or hinders these children in becoming continent.
Key points
- 13 of the 18 children investigated experienced incontinence.
- Data came from 17 caregivers who completed an online questionnaire with quantitative and qualitative questions.
- Five themes described caregivers' toilet training experience: caregiver expertise, emotions, determining the leader, taking action, and evaluating progress.
- There is very little existing research on incontinence and toilet training in children with additional needs who were identified as high-risk infants.
- The authors call for further research on barriers and facilitators of continence attainment.
Limitations
The sample is very small (17 caregivers, 18 children) and exploratory, so the findings cannot be generalised or show what causes incontinence or what helps. The abstract does not say how the sample was recruited or how incontinence was defined.
Abstract
Background The likelihood of a childhood additional need is elevated among high-risk infants and the likelihood of incontinence is elevated among children with additional needs. Although successful toilet training may reduce the prevalence of incontinence among children with additional needs who were identified as a high-risk infant, there is very little research regarding incontinence and toilet training among this group of children. Aims The aim of this study is to determine how many 5- and 6-year-old children with additional needs who previously participated in a service for high-risk infants experience incontinence, and to describe the caregiver experience of toilet training this group of children. Methods In this exploratory study, participating caregivers completed an online questionnaire which included quantitative and qualitative questions. Results Drawing from data provided by 17 caregivers, we found that 13 out of the 18 children we investigated experienced incontinence, and we identified five themes relating to the toilet training experience among caregivers: caregiver expertise, emotions, determining the leader, taking action, and evaluating progress. Conclusion In this exploratory study, we found the majority of 5- and 6-year-old children with additional needs who previously participated in a service for high-risk infants experienced incontinence. Our results also described the challenges caregivers experienced when toilet training this group of children. Findings from this study support further research into the barriers and facilitators of continence attainment for children with additional needs who were identified as a high-risk infant.