Incontinent vs. Involuntary

Nurses General Nursing

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Many many moons ago when I was in nursing school, we were taught that you are incontinent of urine, involuntary of stool. It is still a pet peeve of mine to hear someone say "he's incontinent of stool". NO!! The instructor would have marked you WRONG for saying that incorrectly. Has this faded away? Am I the only one with this seemingly outdated pet peeve?? :confused:

Specializes in Corrections, Psych, Med-Surg.

We learned it as "incontinent" of either stool or urine.

Probably not so much a matter of being outdated, certainly not at your young age, but of where one went to school. You probably have noticed different schools pronounce certain words differently, as well.

We were also taught to document incontinent of stool.

Allison:)

Specializes in Geriatrics/Oncology/Psych/College Health.

Incontinent of bowel and bladder is how we worded it. I kinda like the ring of your phrase tho!

I think I like your verbiage better Vegas, though I too was taught incontinent of urine and stool.

My instructor's went so far as to "ding" you when you didn't say to "Incontinent of stool/urine to diaper/linens..etc". Now that, I rarely see in documentation nowadays.

I'm a CRNA now. I refer to both as a "circulator problem."

Kevin

incontinent of bladder and bowel or of urine and stool here.

edited to add that bowel/bladder didn't pi$$ my instructor as much as the word "monitor" :chuckle she would break out the red pen and say nurses do NOT sit behind a desk and "monitor" anything! we ASSESS!!!!!!!!! :chuckle

Vegas, never heard of that term, and my job involved a large amount of poop.

Specializes in Geriatrics/Oncology/Psych/College Health.
Originally posted by adrienurse

Vegas, never heard of that term, and my job involved a large amount of poop.

Lol Adrienne - I thought the same thing - always kinda prided myself on being a connoisseur of crap ;).

Okay, I just KNOW I'm not the only one here who was taught that long time ago... couldn't have been...

Specializes in Community Health Nurse.
Originally posted by Nurse Ratched

Incontinent of bowel and bladder is how we worded it. I kinda like the ring of your phrase tho!

Yeppers......that's how I was taught too Nurse Ratched. "Incontinent of Bowel and Bladder". :nurse:

When I worked in a certain city in North Carolina in 1993, the patient population had their own phraseology for their bowel and bladder. Example:

Nurse to patient during rounds: "Did your kidneys go yet?" That was for "Did you void....urinate...yet?" :chuckle

And for stool, the nurse would ask the patient this: "Did you doo-doo yet?" Eeeeee-yuck!!! Doo doo????? :chuckle Funny to me only because it wasn't of my culture......NOT to be making light or fun of other people's customs or anything. :)

Specializes in Home Health.

Vegas, I join the majority here, never heard your terminology.

Renee, I have had to repohorifice my wee-wee questions to the point of saying, Do you need to take a pi$$? That they understood! Even tho I feel so gross asking in that way.

Connoiseur of crap? LMAO! Please has it come to that Rached? Hon, you need a vacation day! LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!

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