Health Care Assistant (HCA) - Kelowna - 2024

A urinary tract infection (UTI) is a problem that happens when germs (called bacteria) get into the urinary tract and cause an infection.Your urinary tract is the system that makes urine and carries it out of your body. It includes your bladder and kidneys and the tubes that connect them.
Most UTIs are bladder infections. A bladder infection most often isn't serious if it's treated right away. But if you don't take care of a bladder infection, it can spread to your kidneys. A kidney infection is serious and can cause lasting damage.

The urinary tract is made up of the kidneys, the ureters, the bladder and the urethra. Each plays an important role in helping your body to eliminate waste products in the form of urine.The main job of the kidneys is to remove wastes from the blood and return the cleaned blood back to the body. The ureters are tubes that carry the waste products, as urine, from the kidneys to the
bladder. The bladder stores urine until it passes out of the body, when you urinate, through a tube called the urethra.

This protocol provides guidance on appropriate testing for suspected urinary tract infection (UTI) in adults ≥ 16 years. It also includes guidance in certain populations with potential asymptomatic bacteriuria, such as the elderly, pregnant women and those who will undergo urological procedures.

As anyone who has ever experienced a urinary tract infection (UTI) knows, they can be painful, disruptive, and for some people, highly embarrassing. The impact of UTIs goes well beyond the medical condition itself. At the most personal level, many older adults may be hesitant to bring up UTIs with anyone at all, due to stigma, shame or embarrassment. Depending on how UTI symptoms present, the older person may not even be aware of their condition, or ascribe the symptoms to age or other factors.

Often associated with younger women, many older people may not think of UTIs as conditions which apply to them. Some health care providers may not be as attuned to checking for UTIs in older adults despite their prevalence and negative impacts.

In short, UTIs are no joke. They are often medically overlooked, poorly managed and personally underreported. UTIs negatively
impact physical, psychological, mental and social wellbeing. And all of these can be improved with education and awareness, policy change, and destigmatization.