HELPING YOURSELF BY HELPING YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS!

So many IC patients talk often about the struggle of finding medical professionals that understand IC, are familiar with current treatments, diagnostic principals and more. It is a problem for many but there are some excellent tools available for you to take control of your own healthcare and help your healthcare providers learn more about IC.

First, if you are not already familiar with the American Urological Association's (AUA) Guidelines on the Diagnosis & Treatment of IC, you should be! I believe strongly that this is a tool every patient should know about, read, print out and use as a tool to talk to your doctor about your diagnosis and treatment plan, but especially if you feel your doctor is not as knowledgeable as they should be and you don't have the option to go doctor shopping. Use this tool to help your doctor help you! Here's a link to the Guidelines:

https://www.auanet.org/common/pdf/education/clinical-guidance/IC-Bladder-Pain-Syndrome.pdf

Another great NEW tool that you should recommend to your doctor, even nurses, is the ICA's New FREE Educational Program for Healthcare Providers. This is an excellent tool designed for an interdisciplinary audience with the latest clinical information on identification and management of patients with IC. Healthcare providers that take the course can earn continuing educational credits as well, so there is incentive for them to use it. Here's the link to the Educational Program for Healthcare Providers:

http://www.ichelpcme.org/monograph.php

So if you feel your medical team could help you better by sharing these tools with them, then don't hesitate to share these tools with your medical team!

There are tools available to us and if we aren't getting the care we need, you can Help Yourself by Helping Your Healhcare Providers!