Summary
confusion, UCDs, pain, reduced vision, UTIs
MSU, MOVEMENT DISORDERS, UTI
For many of the women, their motivation for trying out the UCDs was rooted in their dissatisfaction with how they normally produced urine samples at times of a suspected UTI. The study found that most of the women were not aware of the need for MSU samples and the problem of contamination of the samples until these were mentioned to them as part of enrolment in the trial. Instead, they were eager to take part in the trial as a way of helping to find an easier, ‘less messy’ way of providing a urine sample. When they tried the devices, a large proportion of the women, across all age groups, were able to use them to produce a urine sample in the GP surgery or health centre and would feel happy to use the same device on further occasions, even when they had experienced problems on initial use. Women who had not used the devices in the trial reported that they would like to try them in the future. Thus, both devices were considered acceptable for use at times when the women were presenting to general practice with UTI symptoms and more hygienic than their usual method. The women also suggested that certain groups, for example, pregnant women and those with movement disorders, might particularly benefit from using them.The use of the UCDs in the trial was facilitated by verbal instructions and support received by the women from the HCP present. Although this helped them to use the devices, it also raises questions about the sustainability of their use in busy and pressured clinical settings, and therefore the feasibility of their introduction into these environments. An important barrier to the use of UCDs relates to the nature of the UTI symptoms themselves and issues around collecting midstream samples, such as producing sufficient quantities of urine and pain on urination. Finding a suitable position in which to collect urine via the UCD was also problematic for some women, especially those who were less mobile. The women also felt that the UCDs would be less usable among women with reduced vision, women who are overweight, or among women with confusion.The interviews highlighted that it had become common practice for some of the women to collect their urine sample at home before attending an appointment at their GP surgery. Women who experienced recurrent UTIs were often provided with the containers to keep at home ready for use when they suspected a UTI. However, there was uncertainty about whether the UCDs could be made available for home use. Thus, how UCDs could be incorporated into patients’ usual involvement in management of UTIs in the community would need to be carefully considered.An unanticipated concern that represents a major barrier to use are the issues of the quantity of single-use plastic in the devices and that of waste disposal. These issues, together with the cost of the devices, were considered prohibitive by some women. Among women who experienced recurrent UTIs, they commonly found other solutions to improve their ability to collect samples, such as storing sample pots at home to collect a sample before coming to the GP and using receptacles that worked better for them before transferring their sample to a pot.