CONfidence App
The free-to-download CONfidence app provides practical health advice, self-care tips and links to support for people with bladder and bowel leakage (incontinence) - easily accessible in one single place.
We developed the app in partnership with, and on behalf of, the Bristol Health Partners Bladder and Bowel Confidence (BABCON) Health Integration Team.
The CONfidence app was co-created with people who have lived experience of bladder and bowel leakage, and with national experts and organisations specialising in bladder and bowel care.
Page contents (quick links)
How does the app work?
The free-to-use CONfidence app is a national information hub with over 70 quality-assured articles on key topics around bladder and bowel leakage.
The app enables health, care and education providers to:
- provide quality-assured health and wellbeing information - instantly available in one convenient place, even when offline
- promote safe self-care - and reduce avoidable demand on services
- signpost services and other sources of support - and make it easier for people to get help
What does it cover?
The CONfidence app provides easy access to over 70 pages of reliable health and wellbeing information - all in one place.
The information on the app is for people with bladder and bowel leakage and those who care for them.
Topics include:
- About - symptoms, warning signs, feelings, myths, interesting statistics
- Causes - pregnancy, menopause, medical conditions, medication, later life issues, mental health issues
- Self-help - life tips, drinking habits and diet, toileting, avoiding triggers, pelvic floor exercises, skin problems, intimacy and sex
- Treatments - choosing treatments, bladder training, conservative and surgical treatments
- Products - using and buying products, pads and pants, bed and chair protection, toileting aids, controlling smells, devices
- Practical tips - work, out and about, travel
- Young people - challenges, potty training, daytime and nighttime leakage, school, teenagers, family support, children's products
- Carers - caring for someone, managing leakage, maintaining hygiene, equipment, looking after yourself
- Support - about seeking help, useful websites, helplines and charities, your pharmacist, your GP, community support, continence services, hospitals and specialists
The articles on the app are for adults and young people. They're written in plain language and easy to understand.
The content is certified by the Patient Information Forum PIF Tick, the UK's only quality mark for health information.
Who’s behind the app?
The Project Lead is Dr Nikki Cotterill, Associate Professor in Continence Care and Florence Nightingale Foundation Leadership Scholar, Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences, UWE Bristol.
We worked with the following partner organisations:
- Bladder & Bowel UK
- Continence Product Advisor
- ERIC
- Florence Nightingale Foundation
- NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Commissioning Group
- NHS Bristol Urological Institute
- Sirona Care and Health
- University of the West of England (UWE) Bristol
- West of England Academic Health Science Network
Can we customise the app?
Yes, we can customise the app for your local area (premium service).
Customisation includes getting your own home page linking to a page with local information.
Customise apps for your local area (PREMIUM) >
User feedback
"I think the app has been really well designed."
"very helpful, useful and relevant information which is delivered in a way that isn't at all judgemental"
"gives people suffering from incontinence the tools to manage their own symptoms"
"will encourage people to ask for help rather than suffering in silence and feeling their situation is hopeless'
How can we integrate the app into services?
We want to make the information contained in CONfidence easy for everyone to access, and are working with partners to find ways to reach more people.
Watch this video for healthcare providers:
Find out more
To find out more about our self-help apps, go to the FAQ page.
To discuss local customisation for your area, please get in touch.