The paediatric urology nursing service is based across two hospital sites, Trafford General Hospital and Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, and is made up of clinical nurse specialists, experienced staff nurses and nursing assistants. The wider team also includes administration staff, consultant urologists, play specialists, anaesthetics and other allied healthcare professionals.
We support families from birth up to 18 years of age with managing and keeping their bladders healthy. Often, this involves teaching children and their families to fill and empty their bladders better and supporting them with some of the investigations and operations we do at the hospital. The urology nurses have well-established nurse led clinics at Trafford General Hospital and support multidisciplinary clinics in Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Urodynamics lists, review elective and emergency admissions, and co-ordinate the admission, discharge and support of patients already cared for under our service.
Our specialities include Bladder Exstrophy and Epispadias, Neuropathic and Non-Neuropathic bladder and Lower Urinary Dysfunction. As a Centre for Clinical Excellence, we network with Urology Nursing Teams from around the globe in order to continually review and improve our service to provide the best evidence-based care to patients and their families. We also provide teaching for every qualified paediatric nurse who comes to work for the Trust, and support workforce development.
Bladder Exstrophy & Epispadias
Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital is one of only two centres in the United Kingdom who specialise in a rare and complex condition called Bladder Exstrophy & Epispadias. We have a dedicated nurse specialist who is experienced in supporting patients with this condition and is involved throughout the patient journey. For more information about the Bladder Exstrophy & Epispadias service, please visit our website at https://mft.nhs.uk/rmch/services/bladder-exstrophy/
Spina Bifida
As a large children’s hospital, we look after lots of families affected by Spina Bifida. Spina Bifida literally means ‘split spine’ and is defined as a fault in the development of the spinal cord and surrounding bones; this can cause a gap or split in the spine.
For your bladder to empty properly, it relies on a series of signals which are transported between your brain and the nerves in your bladder, via the spinal cord. As Spina Bifida affects the spinal cord, it can interrupt the signals travelling between the brain and the bladder, meaning it may not function and empty correctly.
The urology nursing service has an experienced team of specialist nurses who support and guide families from the point of diagnosis, throughout childhood and beyond, until they are transitioned into adult services.
We have a dedicated multidisciplinary team made up of several specialities and allied healthcare professionals to ensure your child receives the best possible care.
Nephro-urology
Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital is an internationally recognised centre for the management of children with kidney disease and performs on average 20 kidney transplants per year. Often, the nephrology doctors work closely with the urologists, and there is dedicated nurse specialist support which runs parallel to the medical input. This specialist care involves ensuring the bladder is working well before a transplant, as well as helping children and young people to adapt to their urine output afterwards.
Lower Urinary Dysfunction Service (LUDS)
In the UK an estimated 1 in 12 5-19 year olds suffer from bowel and bladder conditions. These include bedwetting, daytime wetting, constipation and soiling.
LUDS is a bladder assessment and treatment clinic set up and run by a team of urology nurses. We help children who suffer from day and night wetting, which can sometimes be symptoms of an overactive bladder (OAB).
When you come to LUDS, you will receive lots of advice to help you/your child improve their bladder function (this is often called Urotherapy Advice) and sometimes we will start medicines to use alongside this. It is very important to understand that the treatment and management options we offer are not a “quick fix” and can take a little while to work but can often make a big difference to your symptoms.
Contact Details
Urology Secretaries
0161 701 1635 (General Queries)
0161 701 8161 (General Queries)
0161 701 1636 (Exstrophy & Epispadias)
0161 701 2161 (Spina Bifida)
Urology Nurse Specialists
0161 701 2476 (General Queries RMCH)
0161 701 7707 (Exstrophy & Epispadias RMCH)
0161 701 1637 (Spina Bifida RMCH)
0161 746 2366 (LUDS at Trafford General Hospital)
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