ABSTRACT
Being continent is a complex and important human skill. Continence can be defined as the ability to store and pass urine and faeces in socially acceptable places and times. It is one of the first skills of independent living learned as infants. For this reason, being incontinent is a difficult experience for a person because it involves the loss of this early skill. Dealing with incontinence is further complicated by its associations with body excrement, bacteria and other microorganisms, and strict social rules and taboos (Lawler 1991). It is therefore not surprising that incontinence is often hidden, rarely discussed, and generally not handled well by healthcare professionals or the community in general.
