Useful addresses
We have included the following organisations because, on preliminary investigation, they may be of use to the reader. However, we do not have first-hand experience of each organisation and so cannot guarantee the organisation’s integrity. The reader must therefore exercise his or her own discretion and judgement when making further enquiries.
Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Women’s Health
c/o Chartered Society of Physiotherapists,
14 Bedford Row
London WC1R 4ED
Tel: 020 7242 1941
Website: www.acpwh.org.uk
Professional association providing guidance in the physiotherapy management of females aged between 16 and 65 with urinary incontinence. Leaflets on continence and pregnancy available on website.
Benefits Enquiry Line
Helpline: 0800 882200
Website: www.dwp.gov.uk
Minicom: 0800 243355
N. Ireland: 0800 220674
Government agency giving information and advice on sickness and disability benefits for people with disabilities and their carers.
Bladder and Bowel Foundation
SATRA Innovation Park, Rockingham Road, Kettering, Northants, NN16 9JH
Tel: 01536 533255
Website: www.bladderandbowelfoundation.org
Their mission is to inspire change and create opportunities to enable people with bladder and bowel control problems have a voice and equal choice. They aim to:-
- raise awareness of bladder and bowel control problems amongst the general public and healthcare professionals
- give access to information and support regarding the treatments, products and services people with these conditions need
Clinical Knowledge Summaries
Sowerby Centre for Health Informatics at Newcastle (SCHIN Ltd), Bede
House, All Saints Business Centre
Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 2ES
Tel: 0191 243 6100
Website: www.cks.library.nhs.uk
A website mainly for GPs giving information for patients listed by disease plus named self-help organisations.
Continence Resource Centre & Helpline for Scotland
c/o 1345 Govan Road, South Glasgow University Hospitals
Govan G51 4TF
Helpline: 0141 201 1861 (Mon–Fri 9.00am–3.00pm)
Tel: 0141 201 1526
Website:
Staffed by clinical nurse specialists expert in the field of urogynaecology and bladder dysfunction. Self-referral clinic for adults living in the Glasgow area.
Cystitis and Overactive Bladder Foundation
946 Bristol Road South
Northfield
Birmingham
B31 2LQ
Tel: 0121 476 1222 (office hours)
Website: www.cobfoundation.org
Offers videos on loan from their library, and information for health professionals and people with interstitial cystitis and their families and friends. Can refer to local groups and individuals for support.
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE)
MidCity Place,
71 High Holborn
London WC1V 6NA
Tel: 020 7067 5800
Website: www.nice.org.uk
Provides guidance on treatments and care for people using the NHS in England and Wales. Patient information leaflets are available for each piece of guidance issued.
PromoCon
Disabled Living, Redbank House, 4 St Chads Street Cheetham, Manchester M8 8QA Tel: 0870 760 1580
Helpline: 0161 834 2001 (Mon–Fri 10am–3pm)
Website: www.promocon.co.uk
Provides impartial, unbiased information relating to incontinence products and services. Has mail order facility for disposable and re-useable products.
Quit (Smoking Quitlines)
211 Old Street
London EC1V 9NR
Tel: 020 7251 1551
Helpline: 0800 002200
Scotland: 0800 848484
Wales: 0800 169 0169 (NHS helpline)
Website: www.quit.org.uk
Offers advice on giving up smoking in English and Asian languages, and also to schools and on pregnancy. Runs training courses for health professionals. Can put people in touch with local support groups. Has free same-day advice on email: stopsmoking@quit.org.uk
Useful websites
NHS Direct
Patient UK
Author’s website
THE INTERNET AS A SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION
After reading this text, you may feel that you would like further information on the subject. The internet is of course an excellent place to look and there are many websites with useful information about medical disorders, related charities and support groups. For those who do not have a computer at home some bars and cafes offer facilities for accessing the internet. These are listed in the Yellow Pages under ‘Internet Bars and Cafes’ and ‘Internet Providers’. Your local library offers a similar facility and has staff to help you find the information that you need.
It should always be remembered, however, that the internet is unregulated and anyone is free to set up a website and add information to it. Many websites offer impartial advice and information that has been compiled and checked by qualified medical professionals. Some, on the other hand, are run by commercial organisations with the purpose of promoting their own products. Others still are run by pressure groups, some of which will provide carefully assessed and accurate information whereas others may be suggesting medications or treatments that are not supported by the medical and scientific community.
Unless you know the address of the website you want to visit – for example, www.familydoctor.co.uk – you may find the following guidelines useful when searching the internet for information.
SEARCH ENGINES AND OTHER SEARCHABLE SITES
Google (www.google.co.uk) is the most popular search engine used in the UK, followed by Yahoo! (http://uk.yahoo.com) and MSN (www.msn.co.uk). Also popular are the search engines provided by Internet Service Providers such as Tiscali and other sites such as the BBC site (www.bbc.co.uk).
In addition to the search engines that index the whole web, there are also medical sites with search facilities, which act almost like mini-search engines, but cover only medical topics or even a particular area of medicine. Again, it is wise to look at who is responsible for compiling the information offered to ensure that it is impartial and medically accurate. The NHS Direct site (www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk) is an example of a searchable medical site.
Links to many British medical charities can be found at the Association of Medical Research Charities’ website (www.amrc.org.uk) and at Charity Choice (www.charitychoice.co.uk).
SEARCH PHRASES
Be specific when entering a search phrase. Searching for information on ‘cancer’ will return results for many different types of cancer as well as on cancer in general. You may even find sites offering astrological information. More useful results will be returned by using search phrases such as ‘lung cancer’ and ‘treatments for lung cancer’. Both Google and Yahoo! offer an advanced search option that includes the ability to search for the exact phrase; enclosing the search phrase in quotes, that is, ‘treatments for lung cancer’, will have the same effect. Limiting a search to an exact phrase reduces the number of results returned but it is best to refine a search to an exact match only if you are not getting useful results with a normal search.
Adding ‘UK’ to your search term will bring up mainly British sites, so a good phrase might be ‘lung cancer’ UK (don’t include UK within the quotes).
WARNING
Always remember the internet is international and unregulated. It holds a wealth of valuable information but individual sites may be biased, out of date or just plain wrong. Family Doctor Publications accepts no responsibility for the content of links published in this series.
